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Negredo 'would prefer to face England over France'
Jun 20, 2012 12:50:00 PM
The striker believes les Bleus possess more quality than the Three Lions, but is impressed by the manner in which Roy Hodgson's side qualified without Wayne Rooney for two games
| Bet: | Returns: | England £15.00 | Draw £41.00 | Ireland £62.50 |
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| Bet: | Returns: | England £14.00 | Draw £43.30 | Ireland £55.00 |
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| Bet: | Returns: | England £15.33 | Draw £38.00 | Ireland £65.00 |
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| Bet: | Returns: | England £15.00 | Draw £38.00 | Ireland £60.00 |
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| Bet: | Returns: | England £15.30 | Draw £38.00 | Ireland £65.00 |
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La Roja scraped past Croatia 1-0 in their final Group C game to progress in top spot, with the Three Lions winning Group D after beating Ukraine by the same scoreline combined with les Bleus' defeat at the hands of Sweden.
The Sevilla man acknowledged that to win the competition you must beat the best teams, but suggested the French would pose a tougher examination of their credentials than Roy Hodgson's men, despite the return of Wayne Rooney.
"To be champions you have to play against the biggest teams." He told Europa Press. "France are a big team. They have a lot of talent. For me they are stronger than England, but that's a personal opinion.
"Even though England have [Wayne] Rooney back, if I had to choose I would prefer to play against the English.
"It's impressive that without their most important player [Rooney], they have been able to qualify. England have a lot of players at a high level."
Karim Benzema has failed to score a single goal so far in the tournament, which has resulted in the France striker receiving criticism from some quarters.
However, Negredo insists that although the Real Madrid ace is struggling to find the back of the net, he is still crucial to his country's hopes in Poland and Ukraine.
"[Benzema] is in great form," the 26-year-old added. "Even though he is not scoring goals, he is giving other things to the team, playing as a false nine.
"He drops off well, is difficult to mark and is very important to the French team. Benzema is a very good striker who gives a lot of good things to France."
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Champions League final - LIVE!
German giants Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund will battle it out at Wembley for European glory. Get involved by sending us your thoughts via Twitter or Facebook! Hosted by Mark Doyle.
5:03 PM BST
We’re still awaiting the confirmed line-ups but if you’re looking for the likely starting 11s, let me point you in the direction of our match preview. Also, if you want an excellent and entertaining analysis of tonight’s fascinating final, well, how does a James Richardson-hosted debate involving Jonathan Wilson and Paulo Sousa tickle your fancy? The prince of puns, a true titan of tactical thinking and a two-time Champions League winner - a veritable dream team, I think you'll agree.
4:59 PM BST
The injury-enforced absence of Dortmund’s Bayern-bound playmaker, Gotze, is of course the principal talking point in terms of team news. The 20-year-old’s unavailability is clearly a hammer blow for die Schwarzgelben, but, as team-mate Kevin Grosskreutz pointed out this week, Dortmund destroyed Bayern in last year’s DFB Pokal final without Gotze.
4:54 PM BST
But what do the fans think? Well, yesterday Goal’s roving reporter Kris Voakes went along to the Uefa Champions Festival, which is being staged at the Olympic Park in Stretford, and he spoke with supporters from both sides.
Johannes, Munich, told Goal: "We haven't lost to Dortmund this season, and though we lost two finals [in 2010 and 2012], we are hoping the third time is a charm.
"Last year the English stole our trophy," interrupted his friend Benjamin, "but we are going to take in back to Munich where it belongs."
But Dortmund fan Nicolas says the loss of Mario Gotze to injury is not too much of a concern for Jurgen Klopp's side: “We have Marco Reus and Robert Lewandowski, and yes, we will be fine without Gotze. We will win 2-0.”
Johannes, Munich, told Goal: "We haven't lost to Dortmund this season, and though we lost two finals [in 2010 and 2012], we are hoping the third time is a charm.
"Last year the English stole our trophy," interrupted his friend Benjamin, "but we are going to take in back to Munich where it belongs."
But Dortmund fan Nicolas says the loss of Mario Gotze to injury is not too much of a concern for Jurgen Klopp's side: “We have Marco Reus and Robert Lewandowski, and yes, we will be fine without Gotze. We will win 2-0.”
4:44 PM BST
However, Dortmund simply cannot be discounted. They relish the role of underdogs and are not in the least bit afraid of their illustrious rivals, having now gone six Bundesliga games without defeat against die Roten. The last time these two met in a final, in last season’s DFB Pokal, Dortmund ran out 5-2 winners. As coach Jurgen Klopp pointed out this week: “We’re not the best team in the world, but we can beat the best team in the world."
4:43 PM BST
Bayern, of course, start as overwhelming favourites to prevail this evening, and understandably so. Not only did they mercilessly batter Barcelona into a shockingly tame capitulation at Camp Nou, they are also coming off the back of a record-breaking Bundesliga campaign which they finished a staggering 25 points clear of runners-up Dortmund, whom they are unbeaten against in four meetings this season.
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