Ancelotti: "My role is not to give minutes to players, it's to make Real Madrid win games"

"There is a limit with the calendar and now it is being exceeded"

   MADRID, 1 Feb. (EUROPA PRESS) -

The Real Madrid coach, Carlo Ancelotti, insisted this Wednesday that his "role is not to give minutes to players" with less prominence, but rather to make the club "win games", at the same time that he criticized the "incredible" calendar , with an "important" February in which he will play 7 games in 24 days, which is "exceeding" the "limits" without thinking about the footballers.

"I know my role very well, it is not the role of giving minutes to players, my role is to make Real Madrid win games. Sometimes some play less and that bothers me personally, I would like to give everyone minutes, because they are all serious and professionals. But I am not the personal trainer of Odriozola, Hazard, Mariano, Rodrygo, I am only the coach of Real Madrid", stated the Italian at the press conference prior to the game this Thursday (9:00 p.m.) against Valencia.

The coach highlighted the "good game" last Sunday against Real Sociedad, despite the draw (0-0). "It was a complete match, the team is improving in all aspects, physical, individual condition, to play games with more intensity. I don't know until when, but in February the team will grow in performance, it's an important month" , celebrated.

"You can always do better. Barça have done better so far, I don't know if five points are a lot or a few, but I know that we have the confidence to fight until the end. We have improved, it's obvious, the squad is starting to be very good A complicated month of January was foreseeable, but we have come out of it quite well. Now the good things are coming for us", he added about a 'tight' February with 7 duels in 24 days.

However, although he stressed that "dosing" efforts is "important, Ancelotti reiterated that they are not going to "throw away any competition", since in all of them (League, Champions League, Club World Cup and Cup) they are "very close". to criticize the "incredible" calendar that the white entity is facing."It doesn't stop here, because LaLiga wants to do its thing, the RFEF, UEFA, FIFA," he commented before the 'marathon' succession of matches.

"It's a serious issue, but you don't think about the players, if one day they get tired... It's a great illusion to play a semi-final against FC Barcelona, ​​but there is a limit and now it is being exceeded. We all have to do something to avoid this", he assessed, before Real Madrid traveled to Morocco on February 8 to play the Club World Cup semifinals.

The first match in February will be this Thursday, in the match corresponding to matchday 17, postponed due to the Super Cup, against Valencia and without Gennaro Gattuso on the bench. "When a coach is changed, it is done to change the dynamics and give more responsibility to the players. Tomorrow they will be very motivated," he analyzed.

"That they fire you is a part of our job, there are no coaches who haven't been fired, maybe only Guardiola, but there will come a day when they throw him out. They have fired me from all over the world", he pointed out about the departure of his compatriot.

For this meeting, Ancelotti confirmed that Dani Carvajal and Aurelien Tchouameni are "fine" and "one hundred percent ready" after completing their recovery processes. Meanwhile, David Alaba "has little left" and he could appear in the League this Sunday against Mallorca or in the 'Mundialito'.

This, added to the injury to Ferland Mendy, could force Eduardo Camavinga to act again as an "emergency" left-back, a position that Nacho can also occupy. "We are quite covered in the position. Camavinga is doing well, he adapts well. In the future he is going to be a great pivot and inside, adapting to playing on the left side means intelligence and humility", he praised.

"We're good at the back because there are players who can play in different positions, like Nacho, that's going to help us. We've had casualties, but now we're pretty solid at the back, we've only conceded one goal against Atleti in the last three games," he said about the defensive side of the team.

Ancelotti was also asked about the great moment of Dani Ceballos, who has made six consecutive appearances, two of them as a starter. The Italian sees the Sevillian as a "replacement" for Luka Modric. "He has characteristics that Luka has, he doesn't mind the ball, he is very intelligent, his physical condition is now optimal, he has confidence and personality", he praised.

Precisely, regarding a possible foreign offer for the Croatian, who ends his contract in June this year with the white club, Ancelotti asserted that "the legends of Real Madrid have to retire at Real Madrid."

Thus, he addressed the issue of the winter market, which Real Madrid has not attended. "If you do a good planning, you do not need it. Sometimes signing in winter means that something has happened, but we have thought that it was not necessary to sign, the squad is fine", he explained, although he spoke of the incorporation of Fran García for the the next course.

"It could be a potion, but Mendy can recover soon, and it is good for Fran to continue at Rayo to progress and gain experience," he added.

Finally, Ancelotti affirmed that in the Premier, which has spent more than 800 million in this winter market, TV rights are "much higher" and, although he did point out that the internal competition will be "competitive and entertaining", he recalled that " Last year the Champions League and the Europa League were not won by English teams".