Metzelder: I'm a fan of Ireland and its football
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Tuesday July 21 2009
REAL MADRID defender Christophe Metzelder was paying his third visit to Ireland for the Spanish side's friendly with Shamrock Rovers last night -- and the German international declared himself happy with the night's work in Tallaght.
The big centre-half, who started in defence for Real last night, admits he's a fan of this country and our football, having first come here as a teenager on a family holiday and then returned for a European Championship qualifier in 2007, Metzelder playing in the 0-0 draw at Croke Park that secured German qualification for Euro 2008.
"I loved playing in Ireland. I was here when I was a boy of 16, my father and I made a tour around Ireland for a holiday. The atmosphere was very good as the fans enjoyed the game, and it's good that it was a close match," he told the Herald after last night's win, when Karim Benzema stole the headlines from Cristiano Ronaldo with his late goal.
Physical
"It was a typical English-style game. I know we were playing an Irish club in Ireland but they played like an English team, very strong and physical, very fast.
"It was a good exercise for us to keep up our training and to get into our rhythm. It was a good game for the spectators and for us, it was good that we did not beat them 5-0 and it was very close until the end. I think the crowd enjoyed the game.
"Shamrock Rovers played well. They didn't just sit back, they tried to make chances and get opportunities against us. They were a very strong side, so 1-0 was not a bad result for them," added the German international, who was glad to see the new faces bed into the Real side.
"It was good for the new boys like Benzema and Ronaldo to get their first game out of the way. They have been training with us for a few days now but it's better to play a game. A match is very different from training and you could see in the game last night that those new players have a real quality about them.
"Cristiano and Karim showed their skills and they will be very good players for us," added the German.
"This is a very special club, it has a great history and is always looking to be number one in the world, so we have to chase titles to reach our goals."
- Aidan Fitzaurice
