Casemiro: “Fans who whistle Bale are whistling the history of Real Madrid”

Casemiro was the player selected to speak to the media ahead of Real Madrid’s second leg against Chelsea. He insisted that this game won’t be easy, despite the 3-1 advantage from the first leg at Stamford Bridge.

Previewing the game in the pre-match press conference, Casemiro stated: “We know it won’t be easy. They’ll have their strengths and we’ll have ours. It’ll be very different to the first leg, even though we played our best 90 minutes of the season the other day. We can’t believe the words of Tuchel [about the tie being over]. This is the team that won the tournament last year, so they have our respect.”

On the season as a whole, the Brazilian said: “At Real Madrid, we always want to win everything. If we’d said we’d be 12 points ahead in the league, in the Champions League quarters and with one title already won, we’d probably have signed up for that at the start of the season. But, we the players know that the most important part of the season is still to come. It’s the most difficult part too. At this club, we always fight to the end and will give our all.”

Casemiro also stressed that the fanbase need to back to team on Tuesday night, like they did against Chelsea. He also criticised those who whistled Gareth Bale on Saturday night, saying: “When they whistle one player, they’re whistling us all. I don’t like when they whistle one of us. I didn’t like them whistling Bale since he’s a player who has done a lot for the history of this club. The fans who whistle Bale are whistling the history of this club. I hope the fans will be with us in this game because we’ll have a long 90 minutes.”

Casemiro on his lack of a replacement

It is often said that Casemiro is the most irreplaceable player in the Real Madrid squad, but he feels that it’s difficult to replace his teammates too. On that debate, he said: “There’s not a substitute for Modrić, Kroos or Valverde either. Every player has their own characteristics. Maybe there’s not another player who is very like me, but we have a good squad and players like Valverde and Camavinga have done well when they’ve come in. Every member of the squad is important at this stage of the season.”

Casemiro on the impact of Valverde on his play

Asked if he prefers to play with Fede Valverde in the team so that there are four midfielders on the pitch, Casemiro explained that this isn’t an issue for him to decide. He said: “I think that question is more so for the coach. When you play with Valverde it’s one system and when Rodrygo or Asensio plays then it’s a slightly different system. But, our coach is very experienced and he’s the one who understands this.”

Casemiro on Benzema’s evolution

Discussing Karim Benzema and the way he has evolved over the past few years, Casemiro said: “The only thing that has changed with Karim in the past few years is with goals, as he has taken a step forward and scored great goals. His understanding of the game has always been there. Sometimes you, the media, only see the goals, but we see all the rest and we get to see the footballer he is in training every day. We’ll keep enjoying the top player that he is. Right now, he is our most important player.”

Casemiro on his suspension against Sevilla

Having been booked for arguing with the referee on Saturday, Casemiro will now miss the upcoming LaLiga Santander game against Sevilla. He regrets that booking, stating: “That was my mistake. I shouldn’t have got a yellow card for dissent. It’s especially annoying because it means I miss Sevilla and that’s probably the most important game of the rest of the league season.”