Micho ahead of City clash: “Maresca is like a brother to me”
· Yahoo Sports
A huge Champions League night awaits! RB Leipzig face a tough test against Manchester City on Wednesday evening (21:00 CET).Ahead of the showdown with Erling Haaland, Joško Gvardiol and Co., RBL head coach Martín Demichelis spoke to the media at his pre-match press conference. Who's available for selection? And how can the Red Bulls get the better of one of Europe's best teams?
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Micho on his relationship with City boss Maresca
“Enzo Maresca worked under Pep Guardiola twice, first coaching the U23s and then as his assistant. They enjoyed their most successful year together under Pep. We know each other very well and we're almost like brothers. I know his philosophy and how he wants to play. Enzo is a winner and he'll be looking to win trophies with Manchester City.”“I had three fantastic years at Manchester City myself, but that was a long time ago. Being a coach is a completely different job.”
Micho on the team's progress and Baumi
“The players needed time to get to know me, and I needed time to get to know them. We've played well in our last three games. We've become more solid and put in an excellent performance both on and off the ball at Schalke. We'll try to produce the same kind of display at home against a top-quality side.”“Baumi has been working hard on his fitness for some time now. He made an impact in just ten minutes against Real Madrid and played another 30 minutes at the weekend. He'll start against Manchester City. We're delighted he's ready.”
Baumi on his comeback
"I’ve never lost my eye for goal. I’ve always known where the net is. I'm absolutely delighted that things have gone so well since my comeback, because you can't take that for granted. Coming back and immediately contributing goals and assists gives you an enormous boost as a player. But we all know I won't be able to keep producing those numbers at the same rate.”“I'm really pleased that I've been able to work my way back with the help of everyone at the club. Communication with the coach has been fantastic. I'm looking forward to getting more minutes under my belt. But what's more important than my individual performances is that we're successful as a team.”
Baumi believes RBL can trouble City
“We're up against an absolutely top-class opponent. We showed against Real Madrid that we can compete with teams like that for spells of the game. City have incredible quality, but we've seen recently that they can be vulnerable. We have to be brave.”“The question is whether we can take the game to them and cause them problems. If we play with courage, we'll create chances against City too. We might not get as many as we do in the Bundesliga, but the opportunities will come and we have to take them.”
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