Real Madrid manager Zinedine Zidane refuses to see Wednesday night’s clash against PSG as ‘Cristiano Ronaldo vs Neymar’.
Ronaldo has had a fallow season but steps into the Champions League last-16 with the 2017 Ballon D’Or to his name and a boost in the way of a hat-trick against Real Sociedad in Madrid’s last game.
Meanwhile, Neymar has been in exceptional form since moving to PSG as the world’s most expensive player in the summer.
And he is viewed as a major target for Real, who have tried to sign him in the past and are expected to move for him over the next few transfer windows. He is viewed as a potential replacement for Ronaldo.
The presence of two major stars of the world game have made the tie highly anticipated ahead of Wednesday’s first leg at the Santiago Bernabeu.
But Zidane is keen to focus on the two teams, not their biggest names.
‘We talk about two great players but tomorrow it’s Real Madrid v Paris Saint-Germain, not Neymar vs Cristiano,’ he said, as reported by FourFourTwo.
‘We can talk about a player like Cristiano, who has done amazing things in the game and won five Ballons d’Or, but everyone can see Neymar’s quality on the pitch.
‘He’s a quality player but we don’t want to see a duel between Cristiano and Neymar, we want to see Real Madrid v Paris Saint-Germain.’
Real are currently fourth in La Liga while PSG top Ligue 1, having lost just two of their 25 league games.
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