Gerard Piqué – FC Barcelona
The side from the capital lost their match-day two fixture, a shock 2-1 defeat to Getafe, as Barcelona came from behind to beat Osasuna by the same score.
And Pique picked up on their rivals’ poor start to the new league campaign, stating that it will be a long battle to reclaim the title.
“It’s surprising that Madrid has only one point right now, but they could easily go the next 30 games without a loss,” Pique explained at a Barcelona press conference.
“I was very motivated for this season. It couldn’t have started better, but La Liga is about 38 games, not about two.”
Meanwhile, Carlos Puyol is a doubt for Barca’s vital Spanish Supercopa fixture against rivals Madrid after the 34-year-old suffered a suspected fractured cheekbone in the win over Osasuna, following a collision with Roland Lamah.
“Knowing him, I wouldn’t yet say he won’t play on Wednesday,” joked Pique, who remains optimistic about the fixture.
“We want to win the Super Cup, it would be the fourth in a row. We will go to Madrid trying to win the game.”
Real Madrid today completed the signing of Luka Modric, and Pique is keen to see how the Croation adapts to Spanish football.
“He’s a very good player, who can control midfield,” he said. “Now we have to see how he adapts to Madrid and La Liga.”