“Everyone gave Real Madrid to die for, but we will not give up”
Real Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti spoke at a news conference ahead of their Copa del Rey last 16 tie against Villarreal.
Matches against Villarreal: “It’s an opportunity. It’s a complicated moment. It’s a tough game, but we see it as an opportunity to get out of this situation.”
Barca talks about the new era: “I don’t get into this debate. Barca have always been great rivals, they are and will be in the future.”
Will Courtois and Benzema play? “Yes, they will play tomorrow.”
?¡@MrAncelotti on rueda de prensa!
? @VillarrealCF | #CopaDelRey pic.twitter.com/3ROnQaYKDx— Real Madrid CF (@realmadrid) January 18, 2023
How do you see the team? “It’s difficult to have such a high level of physical fitness. But injuries affected us. Tchouameni, Alaba, Lucas… It’s unpredictable. It’s normal not to be at the top at the moment. January is a complicated month. We have to have games this. Everyone gave Real Madrid to die, but we are thinking about getting back up. The season is very long. We have to survive this period. We will play against strong teams who are in good dynamics. We will not give up. We We will get through this. When, I don’t know. We hope tomorrow. We will fight until the end.”
In Barcelona they talk about the end of the cycle: “I’m talking about Real Madrid’s moment. This is a young team. Camavinga, Vinicius, Rodrygo, Valverde, Militao, Tchouameni and those who will come in the future. This is the beginning of a cycle at this club. The players who marked the “Era a very important one is coming to the end of their career soon. More than the end, I think this is just the beginning. It is a transition after a fantastic era. The day Karim and Luka stop playing, the others will take over. This is not the end.” , this is the beginning.”
Criticism of Kroos and Modric: “Those are two different cases. Toni is doing very well, he is in good physical shape. He didn’t go to the World Cup. He contributed to the team. Injuries are different, his performances are not optimal.”
Camaving still out at half time: “Against Valencia it wasn’t a technical change, he did well. I changed him to avoid playing with 10 men. Against Barca he could have done better in defense but I wanted players up front. It’s true I took him out a few times in the first half. “
Defense issues and Nacho’s role: “Nacho is a very reliable player. In fact we have been very optimistic recently, and we have conceded six goals. The Alaba penalty and the other five could have been avoided with more pessimism. We offer five goals that could have been avoided.”
What did you learn in 2015? “It was a fluke. In January last year we also had a dip. We came out well and we will do it again this season.”
Kroos as a pivot, is he your 5 without Tchouameni? “No. We think about it all the time. Kroos can be more useful off the ball and in other games a more defensive pivot can be more useful. Camavinga could be an option as a pivot in this case.”
Why doesn’t he rely more on Cantera like Barca did? “It’s hard to say. The club pays a lot of attention to the academy. There are young players who are developing very well. Every era has its moments. I think the players of 2004 were very good and soon they will be useful for the first team.” .”
What is the role of the coach in these difficult times? “Roles, in tricky moments… not too complicated. You have to judge properly, be as objective as possible and keep things as simple as possible. The easiest thing in football is to do well defensively.”
Will Vinicius Tobias be there tomorrow and how do you find Napoli? “Naples can become champions. Vinicius Tobias is part of the calling. Carvajal and Lucas are out and Odriozola is back from injury. He can play tomorrow.”
Recipe to wake up: “Regaining confidence. We did very well until November. In 20 days we have the Club World Cup. We have a team with fantastic players.”
