Roma's Luciano Spalletti believes there are 'no favourites' and fancies a '50 per cent' chance of beating Real Madrid.
The Champions League Last 16 between the two teams kicks off tomorrow at 19:45 GMT. The Tuscan Coach already defeated the Merengues in a similar scenario back in 2008, and will be able to count on a few of the same players, most notably Francesco Totti and Daniele De Rossi.
“Daniele trained well yesterday,” he told the Press. “I expect him to keep up the same pace today. He will be called up.
Roma's Luciano Spalletti believes there are 'no favourites' and fancies a '50 per cent' chance of beating Real Madrid.
The Champions League Last 16 between the two teams kicks off tomorrow at 19:45 GMT. The Tuscan Coach already defeated the Merengues in a similar scenario back in 2008, and will be able to count on a few of the same players, most notably Francesco Totti and Daniele De Rossi.
“Daniele trained well yesterday,” he told the Press. “I expect him to keep up the same pace today. He will be called up.
“As a Coach I have multiple tactics that I can use. You must use players that are strong, while being careful to pick the ones that form a strong team.
“I can play with a mobile attack or a physical attack. I'll evaluate in the next few hours, then tomorrow we'll see what the best solution is.
“I think there are no favourites. We have a 50 per cent chance of making it to the next round.
“The last time I took out Real I had a stable Roma, with a tried-and-tested system that had already produced results. Right now we're trying things out and searching.
“We took a path which lets us bring out the qualities of our team. We need to field-test it and this is a great match to see whether we're on the right path.
“I have a lot of faith in my footballers. I saw them being concentrated and in constant development.
“[Edin] Dzeko? All of my footballers are important in a game like this. I'll need everyone's help. Real are the same team that won the Champions League a few years ago.
“I need a total contribution. The Coach can make a few decisions, but the decision will always be to put together the best eleven to take advantage of that 50 per cent chance of qualifying for the next round.”