"We're Real Madrid, we never feel less than anybody. We shouldn't feel inferior to anybody. We all know the opponent very well, the club, the coach [Pep Guardiola], the players. They were champions two years ago. But we go into it with a lot of excitement ... Tomorrow we'll play to win."
"It's a slightly different match than last time. Now it's home and away, and that changes things quite a bit. But it's important to get a good result for the second leg... We don't want what happened last time to happen again, when we let it slip away because of our own mistakes."
"[Mbappé] is much better. As I've said, it's about going day by day, how he evolves, but this week has been very positive. He's much better, so we're expecting him back soon."
Real Madrid prepares to face Manchester City in the Champions League round of 16 after losing 2-1 to City in December's league phase. Manager Álvaro Arbeloa emphasizes that Madrid will not feel inferior to their opponents and aims to compete with confidence. Midfielder Federico Valverde notes the two-legged format differs from their previous encounter and stresses the importance of avoiding mistakes. Madrid faces significant injury challenges, missing Kylian Mbappé, Jude Bellingham, Éder Militão, Álvaro Carreras, and Rodrygo. Arbeloa reports Mbappé's condition is improving and expects his return soon. This marks Arbeloa's first matchup against Pep Guardiola as a coach.
Read at ESPN.com
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