SPAIN: FOOTBALL - Real Madrid host Olympique Lyon in Champions League with striker Gonzalo Higuain in the form of his life

Record ID: 824733

  • Title: SPAIN: FOOTBALL - Real Madrid host Olympique Lyon in Champions League with striker Gonzalo Higuain in the form of his life
  • Date: 18th October 2011
  • Summary: (SOUNDBITE) (Spanish) REAL MADRID GOALKEEPER IKER CASILLAS, SAYING: "I think that we took a step forward after six years when we could not reach quarter finals and that was the important thing. The balance against Lyon is not good for Real Madrid I think that we have won once, last year at the Bernabeu. I think perhaps it was that that forgot the ghost of the past and broke this barrier against Lyon and the Champions League." (SOUNDBITE) (Spanish) REAL MADRID GOALKEEPER IKER CASILLAS, SAYING: "As you have said I know him from four or five years and he is a guy that I always wanted to work with and his obsession with scoring goals, helping the team, and we are very happy with the good run he is going through. But we are also happy with Benzema, he is a player that scores goals and give us a lot of possibilities in front of the goal and the good thing is that the collective wins." CAMERAMAN MOURINHO AND CASILLAS LEAVING NEWS CONFERENCE ROOM
  • Embargoed: 2nd November 2011 12:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Spain, Spain
  • Country: Spain
  • Topics: Sports
  • Reuters ID: LVA44JX8XPAAOTCV0XMLXMCY1C6X
  • Story Text: Real Madrid coach Jose Mourinho said on Monday (October 17) that strikers Karim Benzema and Gonzalo Higuain are both in good shape to play against Olympique Lyon in Champions League Group D.
    "Well right now Karim is in good conditions to play, he is not injured and neither is Higuain. Both are going through a very good time, perhaps both can play at the same time or perhaps one of them will play and there is also the possibility that both may be on the bench and that we will be playing other players," Mourinho said at a joint news conference with Real's captain Iker Casillas.
    Real Madrid host Olympique Lyon on Tuesday (October 18) with striker Higuain in the form of his life and providing coach Jose Mourinho with a welcome selection headache.
    The Argentina striker, who missed most of the second half of last season with a back injury, netted his third hat-trick in two weeks in Saturday's (October 15) 4-1 La Liga win at home to Real Betis and is making a strong case for a regular starting spot ahead of former Lyon forward Benzema.
    Benzema, who made 112 Ligue 1 appearances and scored 43 goals for Lyon, has also been in good form for Real this term and is ready to return to action after shaking off a minor muscle strain.
    Mourinho said that although Lyon have changed several players and the coach, they are still a dangerous team.
    "A serious team, rigorous, tactically very good, strong in defence, good on the break and dangerous from set pieces, they don't have Junhino but they have Gourcuff and Kallstrom," he said.
    "It's always has been like this, the essence does not change and that is proved when year after year they play in the Champions League and fight, they used to qualify for the next round and they make it to the quarter-finals and semi-finals, it's because of that that nothing changes," Mourinho said after a training session.
    Goalkeeper Casillas said that last season Real took a step forward when they defeated Lyon 3-0 at the Bernabeu.
    "I think that we took a step forward after six years when we could not reach quarter-finals and that was the important thing. The balance against Lyon is not good for Real Madrid I think that we have won once, last year at the Bernabeu. I think perhaps it was that that forgot the ghost of the past and broke this barrier against Lyon and the Champions League," the captain said.
    Asked about Higuain, Casillas said that the good run he is going through benefits the team.
    "As you have said I know him from four or five years and he is a guy that I always wanted to work with and his obsession with scoring goals, helping the team, and we are very happy with the good run he is going through. But we are also happy with Benzema, he is a player that scores goals and give us a lot of possibilities in front of the goal and the good thing is that the collective wins," he said.
    Lyon are second in the group four points behind Real who have six.
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