Rafa Benitez insists Real Madrid will go on the attack when they host Barcelona in Saturday night’s Clasico.
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Benitez has come under criticism already during his short reign at the Bernabeu, facing accusations that he is instigating an excessively cautious style of play.
Those complaints were particularly vociferous in the wake of last month’s Madrid derby at Atletico, when Los Blancos took the lead but then appeared to retreat into their shell, allowing the hosts to fight back and claim a 1-1 draw.
It has even been reported this week that senior players have met with Benitez to plead for him to adopt a more positive approach.
But the former Napoli coach insisted he will not look to put the handbrake on his players’ attacking instincts, saying: “Real Madrid have certain characteristics: attacking, scoring goals and creating danger around the opposition goalmouth.
“We do that regardless of the opposition and that’s what we’ll do in this game. When we’re playing at our stadium, I always think Real Madrid are favourites.”
However, Benitez also vehemently denied the claims that he has been approached by members of the squad to alter his approach.
He added: “I have a lot of respect for journalists and it’s not easy to find information. But I would say to every Madrid fan that information is false. There wasn’t a meeting or anything else with the players.
“I have been managing football teams for 25 or 30 years. I haven’t done badly and I’m going to carry on doing it the same way.”
Like Luis Enrique, Benitez faces several selection dilemmas after seeing a number of key players battle with injuries in recent weeks.
El Chiringuito | Casemiro had a meeting with Benitez and came out of it sad. It appears Cas will not start against Barcelona.
— SocialRMadrid (@SocialRMadrid) November 20, 2015
Karim Benzema, Dani Carvajal, Gareth Bale, Keylor Navas and Sergio Ramos have all taken part in full training this week. But Ramos was the only player whose place he was prepared to confirm, however, with the question of Benzema’s availability particularly uncertain following the French striker’s six-week absence with a hamstring injury.
During that period on the sidelines, Benzema has also been forced to deal with unsettling personal issues after being accused of taking part in a plot to blackmail fellow French international Mathieu Valbuena over a sex tape.
But Benitez would not be drawn on the striker’s physical or mental condition, restricting himself to saying: “He is in the squad and has trained well.”
Considering the criticism over his supposed defensive style, perhaps the most significant decision facing Benitez is in midfield, where he is under pressure from fans and media to omit the physically imposing Casemiro in order to accommodate a more attacking player.
One man whose case has been stated particularly strongly is James Rodriguez, who has returned unscathed from international duty with Colombia after being left on the bench when Madrid lost 3-2 at Sevilla a fortnight ago.
