James Rodriguez will have the winning goal in his sights when Real Madrid visit Atletico Madrid in the Supercopa de Espana second leg on Friday...Who are you rooting for to win this Cup?...Continue to see match preview Analysis....
The
Colombia international, who arrived from Monaco last month, opened his
account for the European champions as they were denied late on in a 1-1
first-leg draw at the Santiago Bernabeu on Tuesday.
James applied
the finish to a scrappy build-up to open the scoring in the 81st
minute, before Raul Garcia tapped home from a Koke corner to give
Atletico the advantage on away goals.
And, while revealing his
delight at getting off the mark for Real, James is determined to score a
goal of even greater importance when the sides meet again at the
Vicente Calderon on Friday.
"I'm happy because it is a day I had dreamed of," he said. "I scored a goal, but we wanted to win and that wasn't to be.
"The victory was within reach, but now we have to go out to win in the Calderon.
"We
have to be patient, look for spaces, pass the ball and try to score
there. As a great team we have to go out to win no matter what.
"Hopefully I can score again in the Calderon and try to help my team win there."
Fellow
first-leg goalscorer Garcia has his own designs on lifting the trophy,
though, and says he and his team-mates fully intend to do so in front of
their own fans.
"Another match, at home," he said. "[We're] very eager to play with our fans and win another title that we really want."
The encounter is a repeat of last season's Champions League final, which Real won 4-1 after extra-time.
The sides met five times in all competitions during the 2013-14
campaign, and Real also came out on top when the clubs clashed in the
Copa del Rey - running out 5-0 aggregate winners in the semi-finals
before beating Barcelona in the final.
However, Atletico had the edge in La Liga, taking four points off Real on their way to winning the title.
Real,
who have already lifted the Super Cup during pre-season, will have
concerns over the fitness of Cristiano Ronaldo, who had to be
substituted at half-time in the first leg due to a leg injury, but coach
Carlo Ancelotti has assured fans that the problem is not serious.
Luka Modric should be involved after putting pen to paper on a new four-year contract on Wednesday.
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