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Atalanta striker Ademola Lookman has acknowledged his team's upcoming UEFA Super Cup opponents Real Madrid as one of the best in the world. The two teams go head-to-head in the Polish capital of Warsaw on Wednesday (August 14).
Atalanta won the UEFA Europa League last season, denying Bayer Leverkusen a historic unbeaten season by beating them 3-0 in the final, with Lookman starring with a hat-trick.
Meanwhile, Los Blancos beat another German team, Borussia Dortmund, 2-0 in the final to win a record-extending 15th UEFA Champions League title. Having also won the La Liga title earlier in the season, their latest continental success was their second La Liga-UEFA Champions League double in three years.
Ahead of the clash with Carlo Ancelotti's side, Lookman had no qualms admitting that Los Blancos are the 'biggest' team in the game (as per Madrid Xtra):
“Real Madrid are probably the biggest team in the world.”
Lookman scored twice inside 26 minutes and added a third late on as Atalanta handed Xabi Alonso's Leverkusen their only defeat of a memorable seaon, in the process denying them a historic treble.
Meanwhile, Los Blancos had a historic campaign of their own, going unbeaten during the campaign to capture their 15th Champions League title.
Real Madrid might not start with Kylian Mbappe against Atalanta
Real Madrid completed their much-awaited move for striker Kylian Mbappe this summer, with the Frenchman arriving on a free transfer following an illustrious seven-season stint with PSG.
Mbappe joins a much-vaunted Los Blancos attack featuring Brazilians Vinicius Junior, Rodrygo Goes and fellow new signing Endrick. However, boss Carlo Ancelotti might stick with a similar XI that started the Champions League final win over Dortmund in June.
Ahead of the Super Cup clash in Warsaw with Atalanta in midweek, the legendary Italian boss hinted about continuity as he threw a sneak peek into his probable starting XI (as per Diario AS via Madrid Universal):
“You have to take into account those players who won the Champions League.”
The statement means Mbappe and Endrick are likely to come off the bench, with Los Blancos also following a similar trend in their Super Cup win over Eintracht Frankfurt two years ago.
While Toni Kroos has retired and Nacho Fernandez has moved on from that Champions League-winning final XI, Los Blancos might make some changes in their XI.
That's because the likes of Jude Bellingham, Aurelien Tchouameni, Dani Carvajal and Fede Valverde missed pre-season following their deep international runs in the summer.
