Rafael Benitez says it is not true he tried to teach Juve forward Cristiano Ronaldo how to take free-kicks while serving as manager of Real Madrid.
Benitez was in charge at the Bernabeu for an ill-fated seven months between June 2015 and January 2016 before he was sacked.
The former Liverpool boss struggled to win over the supporters and had a difficult relationship with some of Real Madrid’s first-team stars, most notably Ronaldo.
Benitez is said to have attempted to instruct Real Madrid’s record goalscorer on how best to shoot free kicks.
“That’s a lie. At no time did I tell him how he had to take them,” Benitez told Marca.
“The only conversation I had with Cristiano about free-kicks was in Australia, during pre-season. I told him we had analysed, together with my goalkeeper coach, the free-kicks he took when he was at Manchester United and the trajectory of the ball in relation to the position of the wall.
“Our idea then, as Liverpool coaches, was to try to counter their [United’s] free-kicks. But that’s it. At no time, as coach of Madrid, did I tell CR7 how free-kicks should be taken.”
Benitez also denied trying to persuade Luka Modric to stop passing the ball with the outside of his right foot, saying he merely encouraged him to use his instep for simple passes.
“I only told him that, of course, when you have a simple pass, you have to hit it with the inside [of your foot] because then it’s easier for your team-mate,” Benitez said. “When I played, I also used the outside, but in 10-15-metre passes.
“Anyone who knows me knows this is a lie [that I told Modric to stop]. However, it’s very easy to release lies and make them appear true.”
“I went a long time without talking about the club. In one moment, it occurred to me to say something… and it seemed as though I couldn’t say what I thought,” Benitez said.
“Therefore, what I do is not talk about Madrid. I focus on the future, which is Dalian.
“We were able to sign Lucas [Vazquez], Casemiro and [Mateo] Kovacic. Two of them are still there, and at a good level, but I don’t want to talk about that.
“In six months, they let me do what they let me do. For whatever reason, there wasn’t interest to do more. And that’s it. I don’t want to say more.”
