Ancelotti relishing City re-encounter: “Last season we played without personality”

Carlo Ancelotti took his place in the media room at Real Madrid City to look ahead to tomorrow’s Champions League quarter final first leg against Manchester City at the Bernabéu. The two clubs meet against for the third year in succession, having crossed paths at the semi-final stage in 2021/22 and 2022/23. Tuesday’s game will also be a landmark moment for the Italian who oversees his 200th game in the tournament - more than any other coach in history.

200th game in the Champions League, what’s the key to tomorrow’s game: “The important thing is to get the best possible result. The mental aspect is important - we will need have to show courage and personality out on the field of play. We’ve had time to prepare for this game and we’ve prepared really well. I am confident that we will give the best we have, in every way - mentally, physically, technically... We have enough quality to compete.”

Fear of missing the return leg through suspension

Bellingham, Vinicius, Camavinga and Tchouaméni are one booking away from suspension; possible pressure on the referee: “I hope that’s not the case, to prepare for a match like this there are other things to think about. We don’t think about this. We have four players who are on four yellow cards, if they don’t play the second leg, others will play. It is not a concern for tomorrow’s match.”

In what areas is Real Madrid superior to City? “It will be an attractive match for the world of football, because it’s between two teams, I won’t say we are similar because we both have our own characteristics, but both with a lot of individual quality. That quality is going to make for a very attractive match at a very high technical level. We think of being superior in some aspects, they probably think they are better in others. The superiority will be seen at the end of the 180 minutes, when we see who wins the tie.”

Doesn’t it annoy you when people say, “Guardiola is a great coach, and Ancelotti is is a great man manager”? “No, it’s doesn’t bother me not at all. Guardiola is a great coach, period. It doesn’t bother me what others think of me - what I care about is what they think of my club. Guardiola’s a great coach, no one is in any doubt about that”.

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Lessons from last year: “We played without courage and without personality. It is fundamental in these games. That what what we lacked in the return leg.”

Carletto, still nervous pre-match

After so many years in football, do you still get nervous before a game? “Yes, very nervous. The hours before the game, on a personal level, you always suffer. You’re constantly thinking: defeat is suffering, so what does victory mean? happiness? No, it really is a relief. Happiness is winning trophies, winning games is a relief because it means the following days are calmer. Suffering is part of the job - pressure, stress... it keeps you alive, it is gasoline for me.”

Kyle Walker possibly ruled - could the tie be in Vinicius’ hands? “As I say, I think the tie will be determined by the players with the most quality. There are a lot of players on both sides with a lot of quality. This will determine the match, obviously, as always happens. Apart from the strategy, which must be completely clear, the players must be convinced of executing it in the best way. There are many things in these games - individual quality, how the game is contested, the defence, counter attacks... You have to be at your best. It’s not just one thing that can be decisive, there are many things that need to come together to get past this round.”

Creativity with the ball: “We have different characteristics with the ball, we had Benzema last year - he was a reference for us in attack and now we don’t have him. We have handled his absence with more mobility in attack. And that will be important - having movement and not having the front positions fixed could be the key to tomorrow’s game.”

What is Bellingham’s best position? “He is a great player who has the ability to appear in the area just at the right moment. Physically he is very strong to cover a lot of field and to contribute a lot in defense. He creates spaces and opportunities for us.”

Not the time to experiment

Have you considered doing something different in the starting XI? “I don’t think we’ll do strange things, no... It could be... No. I’m not going to tell you anything about the line-up, don’t worry. There might be one change, but otherwise it’s quite clear.”

Doubt in defence: “I haven’t said anything to the players, I’ll tell them tomorrow.”

Bellingham: “The key is that he is very mature, despite being 20 years old. He is very professional and humble, he does not surprise us as a player, but as a person he does. He is very mature.”

Camavinga’s risk of being suspended: “He’s one booking away but that doesn’t make us think about the return leg - we have to think about this game. We will be playing in our stadium, it is an advantage that we have to take advantage of.”

City’s injury problems: “They have losses, but they have managed their losses well, like us. Guardiola puts centre-backs on the wing and they do it well, they are solid at the back. I don’t think it’s going to have any effect on them.”