Leicester City are the side Real Madrid want to avoid in the Champions League quarter-final, Zinedine Zidane has revealed.
Less than a year after shocking the word by winning the Premier League title, the Foxes have once again exceeded expectations during their first ever campaign in European club football’s elite competition as they outlasted Tottenham, Arsenal and Manchester City to be the final English team standing.
Craig Shakespeare, who replaced Claudio Ranieri as manager 24 hours after the round of 16 first-leg defeat away at Sevilla, along with the City squad will find out their opponents at the quarter-final stage in today’s draw and Zidane is hoping to avoid a trip to the King Power Stadium.
“I don’t think there will be a single coach who are hoping they face Leicester,” Zidane, who led Madrid to the Champions League last season said, as reported by the Daily Mirror.
“They keep achieving what they are told they can’t achieve. Many thought they wouldn’t hold on to their lead at the top of the Premier League — and they did.
“Many thought they could not turnaround the defeat against Sevilla — and they did.
“Whatever club Leicester face, they [Leicester] won’t be favourites. And with that pressure off them and on the other team, anything can happen.
“We have seen they have some very talented players but they also play with a lot of passion and heart. That is never easy to face.
“In the last eight, you are going to be in for two tough games. It’s the stage of the competition where everybody starts to believe and to dream they can win it.”
En route to the last eight, City have kept a clean sheet in all but one of their home games and progressed after overturning that first-leg deficit against the La Liga side thanks to goals in each half from Wes Morgan and Marc Albrighton.
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