On Julen Lopetegui
“Of course I'd like to see Lopetegui,” Valverde said when asked about Real Madrid coach's future. “And tomorrow (Spalletti). It would mean we’re all in our place. We're in the world of football, it's a spectacle and the coaches form part of that. We're at clubs like Madrid and Barcelona which mean the noise is more than the normal.”
On Malcom
“It's true he's not played much, but he has to be ready to play at any moment,” the coach intimated referring to summer signing Malcom. “It could be tomorrow, could be another day,” he added.
Malcom has made the squad to face Inter after being left out against Sevilla in La Liga on the weekend. Many Barcelona fans expect the Brazilian winger to show his quality in Lionel Messi's absence
On Leo Messi
As for the Argentinian forward's return, the coach expects him to follow the schedule: “It’s true that they’ve said 3 weeks. We always try to beat the deadline but it doesn’t seem this way currently.”
“I’m not ashamed to talk about Messidependence because he’s the best we’ve ever seen, it’s normal to depend on him,” Valverde added. “Now we all have to make his absence as least noticeable as possible.”
On Ousmane Dembele and Rafinha
The manager didn't criticise Ousmane Dembele despite his poor display against Sevilla: “The same as any other player, he has to be ready at any given moment. [He needs to] work hard in training and in the games. He lost the ball, just as Rakitic, Suarez and Coutinho do too.”
Finally, he didn't refuse the possibility of starting Rafinha against the Italians: “It’s an option but not because he played for Inter, but I will choose a player based on what will be best for us.”
Reference
Tribuna
https://shortadz.org/GdESrG9