Real Madrid's Alvaro Arbeloa shrugs off 'bitter aftertaste' of CSKA Moscow's late equaliser
Posted Thursday, February 23, 2012 by Goal.com
Alvaro Arbeloa has taken great encouragement out of Real Madrid's performance in their 1-1 draw with CSKA Moscow on Tuesday night, but admitted that the Russian side's last-gasp leveller had left him with a "bitter aftertaste" in his mouth.
The former Liverpool defender felt that Los Blancos, who had taken the lead at the Luzhniki Stadium through Cristiano Ronaldo, could have run out easy winners, making Pontus Wernbloom's 93rd-minute equaliser all the more difficult to swallow.
However, Arbeloa was proud of the way in which the La Liga leaders had coped with the biting cold and the unforgiving nature of the home side's artificial pitch.
"It was a complicated away game," he told the club's official website. "It was hard to adapt to the pitch and we faced a dangerous opponent that pressurised us a lot.
"We have a somewhat bitter aftertaste. But we adapted as best we could and we feel good because we believe we were better.
"The cold was obvious when the ball didn't roll as far as it should have, but both teams suffered that.
"I think we gave a decent performance and that we were better than CSKA. We must now think about the return leg."
Madrid welcome CSKA to the Spanish capital for the second leg on March 14.
Photos
More»
'World Cup's sexiest fan' reveals she WILL be heading...
Saturday May 18 2024
Real star Endrick banned from having VIRTUAL lover
Saturday May 18 2024
Mikayla Demaiter took social media by storm once more
Friday May 17 2024
Your Say