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Wednesday, 11 March 2015

Beating Real Madrid not a revenge for me, says Huntelaar

Klaas-Jan Huntelaar is adamant that his matchwinning goals in Schalke's 4-3 Champions League win at Real Madrid were not revenge for the Liga club's treatment of him over half a decade ago.

The Netherlands striker was signed during the winter transfer window of 2008-09 by the Blancos but was cast away to AC Milan just a few months later.


And Huntelaar returned to wreak havoc on the European champions as Roberto Di Matteo's men triumphed at the Santiago Bernabeu on Tuesday, scoring twice including the late winning goal.

"My two goals weren't any kind of revenge at the Bernabeu for having played here at Real Madrid," the 31-year-old told reporters afterwards. "Not at all.

"I enjoy playing here every match at the Bernabeu, it's the best pitch and the best stadium in the world.

"We felt the fear within the Bernabeu after we scored the first goal. It was a dangerous situation for Madrid. On the pitch, we felt the fear of fans and the players; we knew we could win."

The victory over a mediocre Madrid was not enough to see Schalke into the quarter-finals of the Champions League, but Huntelaar thinks his former club should not be ruled out as contenders on the basis of this defeat.

"It was a big disappointment for us not to qualify," he added. "We won the game, but it was a bit disappointing not to reach the last eight.

"Are Real Madrid worse than last season? One can only analyse this as a single game. They have a lot of quality, they are well-placed to defend their status as European champions. I think they can win the Champions League again, but will not be easy for them."

Huntelaar's team-mate Leon Goretzka also lamented the aggregate defeat and says it will be a slog to turn their focus from failed European qualification to a top-four finish domestically.

"We put in a very good performance," the Schalke midfielder, 20, said. "It was disappointing because we did so well.

"If there were five minutes more, maybe we would have scored the fifth goal. We scuppered a great chance to qualify, it was right there in front of us.

"This result is not easy for us. It will be difficult for us to concentrate on the Bundesliga alone again."

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