Ancelotti: "When this team is close to a title, the boiler heats up"

MADRID, 1 Mar. (EUROPA PRESS) -

The Real Madrid coach, Carlo Ancelotti, affirmed that they are excited for the first leg of the Copa del Rey semifinals this Wednesday against FC Barcelona because they are "close to a title" and that causes this team to raise "the boiler temperature", although he warned that this first duel "is not decisive".

"The desire we have is because we have a rematch for the Spanish Super Cup and because we are close to a title, and when this team is close to a title, the boiler heats up," Ancelotti admitted this Wednesday at a press conference.

The Italian pointed out that this match "must be prepared as always". "With confidence, which is important to have personality and courage to play a complete game in the defensive and offensive aspects. We are excited because these games are the most beautiful for a player and it is a very important game because we are close to reaching a end. There are many things that allow us to enjoy this moment and try to do our best", he indicated.

The Madrid coach has "evaluated everything a bit" for this new Clásico, which comes almost two months after losing the Spanish Super Cup where he believes they lacked "commitment and forcefulness" and made "individual mistakes". "Repeating them would affect us, but I think they won't happen again because we are very close to winning a competition that is very important. We are going to compete, it is not the decisive match, but we can take advantage," he stressed.

In this sense, he is clear that the Cup "is a different competition" and that it does not have to affect LaLiga Santander. "We are 270 minutes away from being able to win a title. They are a very strong opponent and it will be an entertaining match," he remarked.

"The Cup is a competition that at the beginning is not the most important, but when you get to the semifinals it already is. In the first phases you don't always put the best team for the League and the Champions League, it becomes important not at the beginning, but yes in the end", added Ancelotti, who also made it clear that the match official José Luis Munuera Montero "will try to do it in the best way".

The man from Reggiolo believes that they are in a good position for the decisive stretch of the season and, although he clarified that he is not a "wizard", he is "convinced" that they will manage to win a title. "Until now, compared to last year, we have been two points less in the League, but we were not in the Cup semifinals and we had lost the first leg of the Champions League round of 16. We are not much worse off, we are where we deserve, but now comes the good news and the important thing about the season", he stressed.

The Real Madrid coach confessed that he "still" does not know "who the starting team is" due to the quality he has and did not hide that "it could be" that a Clásico would be seen without Toni Kroos and Luka Modric being together, although he also he knows that this is a game "where you need a lot of things like personality, energy and handling the ball".

"Kroos can be a starter because of his personality and the experience that is needed in this type of match and that is why he can have more advantage than others. To give up players of this level you have to think about it," acknowledged the Italian.

Regarding Vinicius, he sees "a positive aspect" that the team depends so much on his performance. "Because he is one of the best in the world, he determines many matches in our favour, so being dependent on him is quite normal because at this moment he is one of the greatest in football," stressed the Brazilian, who will have "an entertaining confrontation " with Ronald Araujo. "Hopefully he can win it," he wished.

As for Karim Benzema, Ancelotti recalled that he helped them "a lot" last season to "win titles" and that they "thank" him for that. "Hopefully we can give it to him this year. He is doing well, the determining moment has arrived and having him means being closer to the titles," he said.

The coach confirmed that Rodrygo Goes "seems to be fine", like Aurelien Tchouameni, who "can be a starter without a problem" despite the competitiveness now of Eduardo Camavinga, who "is doing very well". "It's good to have two players of this level," he stressed.

The former midfielder assured that Eden Hazard is "fine" and that he "wants to have minutes" and praised the improvement of Antonio Rüdiger, who is "always focused". "He can still handle the ball better, but defensively the team is more solid because he and Militao have solidified the center," he pointed out.

Finally, Ancelotti did not give importance to the fact that Real Madrid did not receive any 'The Best'. "The World Cup has counted a lot and he has said that Argentina was a deserved champion and it is quite normal that the three (Leo Messi, Emiliano Martínez and Lionel Scaloni) have won these awards, I personally congratulate them", he settled, highlighting that the first three classified for best player "are of an extraordinary level" and that he could not "choose" his due to "a conflict of interest because they are all from Real Madrid".