MADRID - Real Madrid coach Zinedine Zidane said his side showed less enthusiasm than promoted Cadiz in their shock 1-0 home defeat in La Liga on Saturday, adding that his team could have been two or three goals down before halftime.
Anthony Lozano gave Cadiz the lead early in the game after the visitors had missed four chances in a chaotic start from champions Real, while the Honduran forward also wasted a clear opportunity to double his side's lead.
"They played with more pace than us and more enthusiasm. We can't make any excuses, we played a bad game and we have to congratulate Cadiz. We're not happy at all," Zidane told reporters.
"It was very difficult for us from the start and I wouldn't have been surprised if they had scored two or three goals in the first half."
Real had not lost in the league since a 2-1 defeat by Real Betis back in March, just before last season's competition was halted due to the novel coronavirus pandemic. Their last home defeat came in May 2019, a 2-0 loss to Betis.
Zidane has a habit of blaming poor Madrid results on their inability to convert chances and the ball "not wanting to go in" but made no effort to gloss over his team's display here.
"The way we started the game was what concerned me the most. We then struggled to create chances but that's a consequence of the bad start we had made," the Frenchman said after his side managed only two shots on target in 90 minutes to Cadiz's five.
But Zidane backed his side to turn things around ahead of a crucial week which sees them begin their Champions League campaign at home to Shakhtar Donetsk on Wednesday before visiting arch rivals Barcelona in the 'Clasico' next Saturday.
Real's shock defeat saw Cadiz move up to second in the table, level on 10 points with Madrid who have a game in hand.
"I don't think this game (against Cadiz) is going to have a big impact on us, we're going to try and fix things. Of course tonight is a very bad night for us but we're going to try and change things," added Zidane.
"We've only lost three points. They are three important points, but nothing else. Now we're thinking about our next game."
Reuters