Olympiacos omens good for Guti

Midfielder Guti believes the presence of Olympiacos CFP alongside Real Madrid CF in UEFA Champions League Group C augurs well for the Spanish club going into the teams' Santiago Bernabéu meeting.

Good omen
According to the Madrid stalwart, facing the Greek champions in European competition is a good omen for the Merengues. "When we've played against Olympiacos in the group stage, it's almost always been a good UEFA Champions League season for Madrid. We even won the trophy one year [2000]," Guti said.

Tough opposition
With Olympiacos leading the group from Madrid on goal difference after a victory and a draw for each side, Guti wants to start overhauling the opposition in their double-header on Matchdays 3 and 4. The 30-year-old said: "We have to try to reach seven points on Wednesday. It's a tight group but I think Madrid are favourites and we must show that on the pitch. Olympiacos are a strong team and they've added players like Raúl Bravo and Darko Kovačević."

First reverse
Pacesetters Madrid suffered their first Primera División defeat of the campaign at RCD Espanyol on Saturday, yet despite the setback Guti is focusing solely on the challenge ahead. "We want to go as far as we can, while scoring lots of goals, but that's not always possible. It doesn't matter where you are in the table, any team can beat another. Espanyol was a big game for us, but right now what's more important is the Champions League."

Time to improve
And if the team do stumble again, Guti asks for a little patience for Madrid's new coach Bernd Schuster. "You have to give it time," he said. "There are new players and a new coach – a team like Madrid isn't built in a month. We hope the result against Olympiacos will be a good one for us and that our fans will go away from the game happy having witnessed lots of goals."