Ancelotti: "Benzema cannot play, his feelings are not good"

MADRID, 6 Nov. (EUROPA PRESS) -

The coach of Real Madrid, Carlo Ancelotti, has confirmed that French striker Karim Benzema will not be available for Monday's LaLiga Santander match against Rayo Vallecano, since "his feelings are not good", and has assured that Gerard Piqué , who ended his sports career on Saturday, is "one of the strongest central defenders that this era of football has had".

"We look at the facts, and the facts say that Karim cannot play," he declared at a press conference, denying that he is reserving himself for the World Cup. "Karim is not going to play tomorrow because the sensations are still not good. He trained on Friday, he seemed good, and then it cost him a bit. He will not be available tomorrow," he added.

However, he assured that the Frenchman will be against Cádiz. "I don't think Rüdiger is there, but Karim is," he pointed out. "The lack of Karim in this first part of the season has allowed us to show players who have a lot of quality, such as Rodrygo, Valverde or Vinícius. We have fixed Karim's loss by showing more quality with these players. It is clear that the second part of the season, after the break, we will need Karim. He is going to reach the level he had last season", he underlined.

In another order of things, he acknowledged that he sees the Brazilian Rodrygo more as a center forward than as a winger. "Rodrygo has great projection, more as a center forward or striker behind a striker than as a winger. As a winger it is not his best position, because he is strong in unchecking, in dribbling. I see him more in the future as a center forward than as a extreme," he said.

About Marco Asensio from the Balearic Islands, he stressed that "he can play in two different positions and he does it well". "When he plays inside, he is able to show more of his quality, which is the hitting, the final pass, the assistance... As an inside player, he has to work a little less as a winger. The combination with Valverde in this position is going well They don't play together very often, but the times they have, they have understood each other well. This can be good for us in the future," he said.

In addition, he valued the lack of prominence of the Belgian Eden Hazard. "Hazard's issue is that of many players here, who haven't had the minutes they deserve to have competition. We have to have competition, because it's motivation," he said, before talking about the next transfer market. "Our idea is that the market is closed, in exits and in entries. But if there is someone who asks for the exit, we have to listen", he explained.

Regarding Rayo Vallecano, the Italian coach stated that it is "a team that plays very well, especially at home, that plays with intensity, is organized". "It's a complicated game, but the team is prepared. We'll try to get the best out of it, because that's the only way we can win," he warned.

On the other hand, he spoke about the withdrawal of Barça player Gerard Piqué. "Piqué has been one of the strongest centre-backs in this era of football. Very intelligent on the pitch, very orderly... He has decided to stop, it is important that you decide to stop and not that someone tells you that you have to stop. He has made a strong decision and I wish him the best for his future."

Finally, Ancelotti did not want to assess the possible rivals for the round of 16 in the Champions League. "Rivals are always difficult. Last year we had Paris Saint-Germain in the round of 16 and it could also happen this year, or Liverpool, Milan, Inter... There are very strong teams," he concluded.