MADRID, 4 Oct. (EUROPA PRESS) –
The coach of Real Madrid, Carlo Ancelotti, has assured that speaking “of good or bad luck” can “hide” your own problems and take away “merit” from the rival, and has stressed that the white team has been the one that has “cared the most small details” in the last edition of the Champions League, in addition to showing his “respect” for Shakhtar Donetsk, his rival this Wednesday in the third day of the group stage.
“Sometimes, talking about good or bad luck can hide the problems you have and the rival’s merit. Small details can be controlled with a collective commitment, with a good attitude and with a very strong collective personality. In the ‘Champions ‘ It could happen that they score three goals in six minutes in a final, as happened to me, or score two goals in one minute in a semifinal. The small details are controlled. I think that Real Madrid has been the team that has take care of these details,” he declared at a press conference.
In this sense, he explained that “good football is many things, not only controlling the ball well, but also defending well”. “You can’t be successful if you do one thing well. It’s easier to say the ‘Champions’ is won by the best,” he said. “I would always want to win the ‘Champions’. LaLiga is very important, but the ‘Champions’ is the most important competition in football. They are two different competitions, one of 38 games is different from another of much less; in a tie of 180 minutes small details are important,” he said.
In addition, he praised the mentality of the white club in the highest continental competition. “In this competition the history of this club plays out, it is not by chance that this team has had extraordinary success. It helps us in the present and in the future too, there is no doubt”, he expressed.
Regarding the duel against the Ukrainians, he confirmed that the Belgian goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois will not be there yet. “Courtois is much better after the treatment. There are doubts against Getafe, but hopefully next week he can train and be ready for the next game against Shakhtar and for the Clásico”, he indicated.
He also confirmed that Luka Modric and Lucas Vázquez are returning, and that “a hamstring problem” will leave Dani Ceballos out of the squad. “I have doubts, I don’t know if the match is going to start,” he said of the Croat’s starting job.
On the other hand, he downplayed the penalty missed by Frenchman Karim Benzema against Osasuna. “When Karim doesn’t have his level, opinions arise. It doesn’t affect anyone, neither Karim nor us,” he said, before speaking of Belgian Eden Hazard. “Each player knows his situation. Eden has not spoken to me because he knows the situation very well, that he has other players ahead of him and that there is a lot of competition. The situation is quite clear,” he explained.
Finally, regarding the duel, the Italian coach recognized that it is “very important to get nine points” in the group. “We are well prepared. The fact that the game didn’t go well on Sunday counts, we want to improve and show a different attitude. They are a dangerous rival, who have started this group of ‘Champions’ very well… We have the utmost respect” , assured.
“It is a team that has many problems. The group has started very well, they have a style similar to last year, they have very fast and strong forwards on the counterattack. We have a lot of respect for them,” he concluded.
