Zinedine Zidane - Los Blancos

It has been an up and down month for Madrid with a difficult time in the Champions League out shadowing a great display in the league with Morata stepping up and getting 6 goals in December. Here is manager Zinedine Zidane.

On Morata...
Well Benzema was clearly being affected by his off field troubles so I decided to start Morata and he was absolutely wonderful. His 6 goals were very important for us in the League and the Cup. He has improved so much and he looks like a top player at just 21. He is a great Poacher and we need to get him tied down to the club for a few more years.

On the League performances...
Well we were excellent in the league. We dropped only 2 points and that was a draw to a good Valencia side who kept us at bay throughout the game. Two wins came before that and the 6 points kept us on top of the league for another month.

On the Spanish Cup...
We got through to the second round which we expected to do. Sabadell are a good side so it was good to get the win away from home to make sure we got into the next round. I am not too concerned about the cup but it would be nice to see how far we could get in it.

On the Champions League...
Its over. We are out. We will be playing Zenit now in the Europa League. To beat Steaua so well but crash out is a disaster for this club. I promise the fans that we will win the Europa League now to make up for it and I hope we can do much better next year.


On the league position...
It is good to be top still and I hope we can stay there for the rest of the season. I think we will have an exciting title race this season so we must make sure in 2014 we are out of the blocks very quick.



On player of the month...
Morata. Without a doubt. He has came in for Benzema and he managed to get 6 goals. He will be rewarded for his fine form soon and if he carries on he could be a very important player for us.

What a month for Morata but disappointing that you could not even qualify from the Champions League group stage. Although, you did have a tough group. Wait your Real Madrid,nothing should be tough!!!!!!

Unlucky on Champions League. But you could win Europa League!

Morata -> WOW. Shame about the Champions League but at least your still in a European Competition (Europa League)

2013-10-27 20:13#139847 pompeyblue : What a month for Morata but disappointing that you could not even qualify from the Champions League group stage. Although, you did have a tough group. Wait your Real Madrid,nothing should be tough!!!!!!

HAHA It was tough to take but we need to move forward

2013-10-27 20:38#139852 FM-LD : Unlucky on Champions League. But you could win Europa League!

Could?... Will is a better word

Real Madrid have announced that youngster Alvaro Morata has signed a new 5 year deal with the Spanish club.

The striker has been on great form recently and he netted 6 goals in December and manager Zinedine Zidane promised him a reward and his manager has gave him a new contract extension.

Morata's current deal was set to run out in June 2015 and with many clubs sniffing around him for his signature Real boss Zidane was in a rush to get him tied down to the club for another 5 years.

"He has been exceptional this season so far us and he has improved a lot. At the start of the season I expected Jese to be in this position but Morata has stole the show from him and he has been wonderful".

"I am very happy with his progress and he looks like he is enjoying his football a lot this season and I hopefor more in the second half of the season".

Morata announced on Twitter that he was very happy to sign the new deal and he wants to make the most of his time in Madrid.

"I am glad to be staying here for another 5 years. I want to win trophies with the club and I hope for a good 2014".

2013-10-27 20:46#139853 silas1231 : Morata -> WOW. Shame about the Champions League but at least your still in a European Competition (Europa League)

Cheers

Great for you to have tied down Morata to a long-term contract. Lets hope he can continue his good form!

2013-10-28 11:32#139922 pompeyblue : Great for you to have tied down Morata to a long-term contract. Lets hope he can continue his good form!

I hope so too. He has developed so well in such little time

Morata looking real good .. Good luck for the Europa League !

Cristiano Ronaldo has won the 2013 World Player Of The Year award for the second time in his career.

The Portuguese legend last won the award in 2008 after a great season at Manchester United. This award then led to his world record transfer to Real Madrid in 2009.

The award was delved by Cristiano's manager Zinedine Zidane and the smile on his face lit up the room as he gave his speech to the audience he broke down in tears thanking the people who had made his dream become true.

"It is such a great feeling just being here with all of these top players it just means a lot to me to win this award. I would like to thank my team mates and my coaches who have made this possible and I want to wish my old mentor Sir Alex a happy retirement".

Little did Ronaldo know that Sir Alex was in the crowed and he was brought on stage and Cristiano broke down in tears as Sir Alex congratulated him on his success.

"When Cristiano came to me in 2003, I thought, oh Jesus we have a right mardy git on our hands. He then went on to become the best player in the world and he is truly deserved on this".


Lionel Messi came runner up and Chelsea's Juan Mata came third.

Messi who is Cristiano's main rival spoke of his great friendship with the Madrid star and how they get on very well.

"Well everyone wants to compare us but we do not really care. We love playing football and one day I hope that we could play together and we would make a good partnership. Of course it is sad not to win but he deserves it he has been great all year".

Cristiano scored 43 goals in 2013 and also got 16 assists. The award was always going to be close but the winger snatched his prize from the other worlds best player.

Quality updates mate!

2013-10-28 12:37#139930 kazza121 : Morata looking real good .. Good luck for the Europa League !

Cheers mate

Once again it has been a tough month for Zidane's men with 8 games facing Los Blancos in the matter of a month. Julian Draxler also joined up with his new team mates this month and here are the words of manager Zinedine Zidane.

On the month in general...
Well we had to get back into our full flow after a brief break so we had to be quick out of the blocks yet again to make sure we are still competing for the title. We also drew Zenit in the knockout rounds of the Europa league. That will be a very tough game but the winners will either play Wigan or PAOK in the next round.

On Julian Draxler...
He has not played that well since joining but he is settling into a new league and also a new way of life. We will give him time to settle and once he begins to play well we will have a great player on our hands.

On the league form...
Well the league form was up and down with wins against Celta and Espanyol but we then drew against Granada and Betis. We need some consistency if we are going to push for the title. Benzema started to score some goals again after his scandal was cleared but I am still not convinced that he is a top striker. He must prove to me in the next few months if he is capable of playing regularly week in week out.

On the Cup form...
Well again it started so well by knocking Sociedad out 4-2 on aggregate but we then fell victim to a hard working Villarreal side who managed to win 6-3 on aggregate with the submarines managing a 4-1 win at their home ground. We are out of the cup but we need to concentrate on the league and also the Europa League which we must win.



On the league position...
Well we are still top after a shaky month but I am confident we can carry this on until May. The race for the title will be extremely tight and will without a doubt go down to the last day of the season.

On player of the month...
Well Morata continued his form by netting 2 goals but it has to go to Benzema who has overcome his off field troubles and came back with a bang by scoring two goals also. I hope he does continue as he is a good striker.