Cristiano Ronaldo says the current Real Madrid team is less experienced than the all-conquering side of last season after the Spanish champions suffered a resounding 3-1 defeat to Tottenham Hotspur on Wednesday.
Realโs first Champions League group game loss in five years came just three days after a shock 2-1 La Liga reverse at minnows Girona and had the Spanish media talking of a crisis at the Bernabeu five months after they lifted both titles.
Those twin successes, Realโs first such double since 1958, were built on the strength of a powerful squad which allowed coach Zinedine Zidane to frequently rest regulars without a drop in results, but his squad at Wembley looked remarkably thin.
In the summer, Real parted ways with Colombiaโs 2014 World Cup Golden Boot winner James Rodriguez, Spain striker Alvaro Morata, fullback Danilo and veteran defender Pepe, bringing in youngsters Theo Hernandez and Dani Ceballos.
Their starting 11 on Wednesday featured 18-year-old Achraf Hakimi and second choice goalkeeper Kiko Casilla, while the average age of the teamโs substitutes was 20-years-old.
โThe players who have arrived have a lot of potential but Pepe, Morata and James made us stronger and the players are younger now,โ Ronaldo told reporters after the defeat.
โOur squad isnโt worse, but itโs less experienced and experience is very important. But itโs no excuse and we shouldnโt be alarmed.โ
The front cover of Spanish newspaper Marca on Thursday was at odds with Ronaldoโs reading of the defeat. โAll the alarms are going off,โ it said, adding โMadridโs domestic crisis is transported to Europeโ.
Daily AS headlined its edition โNightmare at Wembleyโ.
Real only need one more point from their last two games to qualify for the last 16 but must win both matches and hope Tottenham drop points twice to avoid coming second in the group and drawing a group winner in the next round.
Ronaldo dismissed any talk of a crisis at Real, pointing to the teamโs enormous success under Zidane, with whom they have won seven trophies in under two years.
โPeople forget about the good times very quickly. I never talk of a crisis, you can lose three or four games but thereโs never a crisis. We canโt forget what weโve achieved,โ Ronaldo added.
โThis is a bad run but we want to turn things around and Iโm sure we will. This is only the start of the season, we still have a lot of time to improve and Iโm convinced we will.โ
