Real Madrid begin the defence of their Copa del Rey title with a trip to third-tier outfit Cornella on Wednesday.
Gareth Bale scored a dramatic late winner as Carlo Ancelotti's men snatched a 2-1 victory over Barcelona in last season's final at the Mestalla - their 19th success in the competition.
Real, who have six players on the Ballon d'Or shortlist announced on Tuesday, head into the round-of-32 first-leg fixture on the back of a 3-0 win at Liverpool in the UEFA Champions League and a 3-1 El Clasico victory over Barca on Sunday.
It would be little surprise, then, to see Ancelotti rotate heavily for Wednesday's fixture, which has been brought forward due to Real's involvement in December's Club World Cup in Morocco.
Iker Casillas, Cristiano Ronaldo and Sergio Ramos are among those who could make way for the likes of Keylor Navas, Javier Hernandez and Raphael Varane at Estadi Cornella-El Prat - borrowed from Cornella's near neighbours Espanyol in a bid to maximise revenue from
[video=youtube;oYuJquVyXW4]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oYuJquVyXW4&feature=youtu.be[/video]
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.the glamour tie.
Near neighbours is no exaggeration, by the way - Cornella's Nou Camp Municipal sits in the shadow of their temporary home.
With Real set to ring the changes for the fixture, director of institutional relations and club legend Emilio Butragueno has warned against complacency.
"There have been a lot of surprises in the cup over the years and we will have to be very focused," he said when the draw was made earlier this month. "They [Cornella] are in mid-table in their division, but playing Real Madrid is always a great challenge and a huge motivation.
"They will be a dangerous opponent and we will very much have to be on our guard."
Cornella have made hard work of their progression to this stage, beating Jaen on penalties in round one before coming from behind to see off Zamora and Leioa.
And progression to the last 16 appears unlikely - even more so when you consider Real could be set for a meeting with city rivals Atletico Madrid should they progress.
If Real do defend their title this year, they will have earned it, as a potential clash with Barcelona awaits in the quarter-finals.
Sabadell will host Sevilla in the only other Cope del Rey fixture to be played before the rest of the ties begin in December.
Gareth Bale scored a dramatic late winner as Carlo Ancelotti's men snatched a 2-1 victory over Barcelona in last season's final at the Mestalla - their 19th success in the competition.
Real, who have six players on the Ballon d'Or shortlist announced on Tuesday, head into the round-of-32 first-leg fixture on the back of a 3-0 win at Liverpool in the UEFA Champions League and a 3-1 El Clasico victory over Barca on Sunday.
It would be little surprise, then, to see Ancelotti rotate heavily for Wednesday's fixture, which has been brought forward due to Real's involvement in December's Club World Cup in Morocco.
Iker Casillas, Cristiano Ronaldo and Sergio Ramos are among those who could make way for the likes of Keylor Navas, Javier Hernandez and Raphael Varane at Estadi Cornella-El Prat - borrowed from Cornella's near neighbours Espanyol in a bid to maximise revenue from
[video=youtube;oYuJquVyXW4]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oYuJquVyXW4&feature=youtu.be[/video]
.
.
.the glamour tie.
Near neighbours is no exaggeration, by the way - Cornella's Nou Camp Municipal sits in the shadow of their temporary home.
With Real set to ring the changes for the fixture, director of institutional relations and club legend Emilio Butragueno has warned against complacency.
"There have been a lot of surprises in the cup over the years and we will have to be very focused," he said when the draw was made earlier this month. "They [Cornella] are in mid-table in their division, but playing Real Madrid is always a great challenge and a huge motivation.
"They will be a dangerous opponent and we will very much have to be on our guard."
Cornella have made hard work of their progression to this stage, beating Jaen on penalties in round one before coming from behind to see off Zamora and Leioa.
And progression to the last 16 appears unlikely - even more so when you consider Real could be set for a meeting with city rivals Atletico Madrid should they progress.
If Real do defend their title this year, they will have earned it, as a potential clash with Barcelona awaits in the quarter-finals.
Sabadell will host Sevilla in the only other Cope del Rey fixture to be played before the rest of the ties begin in December.
Roger: We have the desire to compete against Real Madrid
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UE Cornellà manager Jordi Roger has assured that his team will go into Copa del Rey battle with Real Madrid, full of desire and enthusiasm, along with the hopes that they might just be able to cause an upset.
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Having reached this stage of the Copa del Rey for the first time in their history, UE Cornellà drew one of the plumb ties in the competition when they were paired with Real Madrid. On Wednesday night in the first-leg, manager Jordi Roger has enthused that his side are aware there have been historic upsets against Los Blancos.
“We have the desire to compete. Alcorcón and Real Unión de Irún are two sides who have already eliminated Real Madrid in the past, they’re an example of hope and motivation for the players, but we know this is going to be very difficult. We’re playing against what surely must be considered the best team in the world.”
The main emphasis from Roger, is that the unique opportunity for UE Cornellà to take on Real Madrid, will be enjoyed by all their players without any pressure of expectation.
“This is a reward for everyone, a new experience. I’ve told my players to enjoy competing and to show what they do best, which is to play football.”
Regarding selections for the match, Roger suggested that over the two legs, he’ll try to ensure all his player get minutes, “so they can enjoy the experience,” of playing against Real Madrid.
On the decision to switch the game from their own ‘Nou Camp’ Municipal ground, to the Power8 Stadium home of Espanyol, right next to their own, Roger explained: “For a one-off game like we had before, maybe the club would have planned to play at the Municipal, but I think it’s a great move for us to play this first-leg at a stadium such as that of Espanyol, so that the players can really enjoy the experience.”
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UE Cornellà manager Jordi Roger has assured that his team will go into Copa del Rey battle with Real Madrid, full of desire and enthusiasm, along with the hopes that they might just be able to cause an upset.
.
.
.
.
Having reached this stage of the Copa del Rey for the first time in their history, UE Cornellà drew one of the plumb ties in the competition when they were paired with Real Madrid. On Wednesday night in the first-leg, manager Jordi Roger has enthused that his side are aware there have been historic upsets against Los Blancos.
“We have the desire to compete. Alcorcón and Real Unión de Irún are two sides who have already eliminated Real Madrid in the past, they’re an example of hope and motivation for the players, but we know this is going to be very difficult. We’re playing against what surely must be considered the best team in the world.”
The main emphasis from Roger, is that the unique opportunity for UE Cornellà to take on Real Madrid, will be enjoyed by all their players without any pressure of expectation.
“This is a reward for everyone, a new experience. I’ve told my players to enjoy competing and to show what they do best, which is to play football.”
Regarding selections for the match, Roger suggested that over the two legs, he’ll try to ensure all his player get minutes, “so they can enjoy the experience,” of playing against Real Madrid.
On the decision to switch the game from their own ‘Nou Camp’ Municipal ground, to the Power8 Stadium home of Espanyol, right next to their own, Roger explained: “For a one-off game like we had before, maybe the club would have planned to play at the Municipal, but I think it’s a great move for us to play this first-leg at a stadium such as that of Espanyol, so that the players can really enjoy the experience.”
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Real Madrid manager Carlo Ancelotti praised the professionalism of his team, as they secured a comfortable 1-4 victory away at Cornellà in the Copa del Rey first-leg match.
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Real Madrid, whilst sportingly praising the effort from their opponents, Cornellà.
“The team took the game seriously, we did well and ended up imposing ourselves on them, so I’m happy. For the hard work they did, Cornellà deserved to score, so it’s a fair result.”
There was considerable surprise that Carvajal started the game at left-back, rather than his more natural right-back position. Ancelotti explained: “This is something I’ve been thinking about, so he can get used to playing on the left as well.”
A great turnout of almost 30,000 fans greeted the two sides at the stadium, which Ancelotti felt made for a great cup atmosphere.
“It was a really good atmosphere. Cornellà made the most of it and competed very well. I think that everyone who came to the game will be happy with what they’ve seen.”
When Isco was substituted late in the game, he left the pitch to a standing ovation. Ancelotti felt that was deserving praise for the talented young player, before adding some of his own.
“He’s a much loved player and really switched on. He works hard, he does a lot of running. This is the best period for him since he joined Real Madrid. Hopefully he’ll keep this attitude and rhythm going.”
Many expected Karim Benzema to be rested, along with other notable stars in the side, but that wasn’t the case. Ancelotti enthused about the strength and fitness of the Frenchman, whilst also pleased with the outings that Illarramendi and Khedira enjoyed.
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“He’s fine physically, hasn’t had any problems recovering and he hasn’t needed a rest. I think the whole squad was fine. Illarramendi and Khedira also showed that they’re in good shape, so I’m very happy about that.”
James Rodríguez was also substituted, but though he took a couple of knocks during the game, Ancelotti insisted it was always a move they had plann, whilst confirming the Colombian has suffered no injury.
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[video=youtube;cTnkY2WV33Q]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cTnkY2WV33Q[/video]
“There weren’t any problems, we’d planned to play him for an hour and then make a change. He had a solid game.”
As for comments at his press conference earlier in the day, which appeared to criticise FIFA president Sepp Blatter, Ancelotti admitted that the question he’d been asked was perhaps lost in translation and unclear, with him misunderstanding, before offering his response.
“I want to clarify what I said, because maybe the question wasn’t put to me so clearly. I was asked what I thought of him saying the ‘golden ball’ should have gone to Neuer. Obviously Blatter didn’t say that about the ‘Ballon d’Or’ award, it was about the ‘golden ball’ at the World Cup, just so we’re clear and for me to rectify what was said.”
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Understandably, an easy mistake to make. In Spain the Ballon d’Or is often referred to as the ‘Balon de Oro’ (Golden Ball), just the same as the corresponding trophy at the World Cup, for which Blatter was commenting, is also referred to as the ‘Balon de Oro’. In this instance, Ancelotti had believed the journalist had suggested Blatter had favoured Manuel Neuer, instead of Cristiano Ronaldo, for the upcoming Ballon d’Or, hence his perhaps hasty response.
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Real Madrid, whilst sportingly praising the effort from their opponents, Cornellà.
“The team took the game seriously, we did well and ended up imposing ourselves on them, so I’m happy. For the hard work they did, Cornellà deserved to score, so it’s a fair result.”
There was considerable surprise that Carvajal started the game at left-back, rather than his more natural right-back position. Ancelotti explained: “This is something I’ve been thinking about, so he can get used to playing on the left as well.”
A great turnout of almost 30,000 fans greeted the two sides at the stadium, which Ancelotti felt made for a great cup atmosphere.
“It was a really good atmosphere. Cornellà made the most of it and competed very well. I think that everyone who came to the game will be happy with what they’ve seen.”
When Isco was substituted late in the game, he left the pitch to a standing ovation. Ancelotti felt that was deserving praise for the talented young player, before adding some of his own.
“He’s a much loved player and really switched on. He works hard, he does a lot of running. This is the best period for him since he joined Real Madrid. Hopefully he’ll keep this attitude and rhythm going.”
Many expected Karim Benzema to be rested, along with other notable stars in the side, but that wasn’t the case. Ancelotti enthused about the strength and fitness of the Frenchman, whilst also pleased with the outings that Illarramendi and Khedira enjoyed.
.
.
.
.
.
“He’s fine physically, hasn’t had any problems recovering and he hasn’t needed a rest. I think the whole squad was fine. Illarramendi and Khedira also showed that they’re in good shape, so I’m very happy about that.”
James Rodríguez was also substituted, but though he took a couple of knocks during the game, Ancelotti insisted it was always a move they had plann, whilst confirming the Colombian has suffered no injury.
.
.
[video=youtube;cTnkY2WV33Q]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cTnkY2WV33Q[/video]
“There weren’t any problems, we’d planned to play him for an hour and then make a change. He had a solid game.”
As for comments at his press conference earlier in the day, which appeared to criticise FIFA president Sepp Blatter, Ancelotti admitted that the question he’d been asked was perhaps lost in translation and unclear, with him misunderstanding, before offering his response.
“I want to clarify what I said, because maybe the question wasn’t put to me so clearly. I was asked what I thought of him saying the ‘golden ball’ should have gone to Neuer. Obviously Blatter didn’t say that about the ‘Ballon d’Or’ award, it was about the ‘golden ball’ at the World Cup, just so we’re clear and for me to rectify what was said.”
.
.
.
Understandably, an easy mistake to make. In Spain the Ballon d’Or is often referred to as the ‘Balon de Oro’ (Golden Ball), just the same as the corresponding trophy at the World Cup, for which Blatter was commenting, is also referred to as the ‘Balon de Oro’. In this instance, Ancelotti had believed the journalist had suggested Blatter had favoured Manuel Neuer, instead of Cristiano Ronaldo, for the upcoming Ballon d’Or, hence his perhaps hasty response.
Jesus. Fariborz! It must be hell watching Football cross Atlantics. look at the times 14.00 and 16.00 
Here is 20.00 and 22.00 CET prime time
Here is 20.00 and 22.00 CET prime time
