Mourinho wary of Moscow trip

Real Madrid boss Jose Mourinho says his side will need to adjust to tough conditions quickly in their Champions League clash at CSKA Moscow.

The Portuguese coach believes that the artificial turf at the Luzhniki Stadium and the temperatures in Moscow, which could be minus 10 degrees Celsius at the time of the match, pose an extra challenge for Real in the first leg of the round-of-16 tie on Tuesday.

“We will have to be stronger than the conditions, which are difficult and different,” Mourinho told reporters.

“Synthetic (pitch) is not the same as natural (pitch). Minus 10 degrees is not the same as 10 degrees.”

“We must be at the top of our game to overcome these factors.”

Mourinho expects CSKA to pose a serious threat, having faced the Russian side during his time in charge of Chelsea and Inter.

“Many players are the same,” he said. “This is a great advantage for any team.

“They lost (Vagner) Love, but they signed (Seydou) Doumbia. CSKA have the economic potential to compete abroad.”

“Year after year, they are in the Champions League and it is normal to see them go past the group stage. They are a difficult opponent and we will have to respect them.”

Mourinho then praised Karim Benzema, who has taken his goal tally to 21 following his double against Racing Santander on Saturday.

“He has been playing very well for the team,” Mourinho added. “Everyone who is following him, day after day, thinks that he is one of the players who has improved the most.”

“He is playing very well, scoring goals and doing very good work on the pitch. He is becoming a great number nine.”