Real Madrid manager Carlo Ancelotti’s press conference ahead of Leipzig in the Champions League second leg

Real Madrid take on RB Leipzig in the second leg of their UEFA Champions League Round of 16 game at the Estadio Santiago Bernabéu on Wednesday (3:00 p.m. ET / 12:00 p.m.). Ahead of the game, Carlo Ancelotti sat down in front of the press where he talked about, among other things, the state of the squad after the controversial 2-2 draw against Valencia in LaLiga, which saw Jude Bellingham have a late goal ruled out before being sent off.

His thoughts on the game against Leipzig: “It’s an important opportunity to continue in a special competition for us. We have to be at our best. The tie is not over.

What do you think of the referee? (Davide Massa, 42-year-old Italian): “I’m calm. I don’t like to think about the referee before a match. And especially not after either.

Who will play in defence, Tchouaméni or Nacho? “I have some doubts about the eleven and I’m not going to give any clues. Nacho has the same chance to start”.

Did you speak to Bellingham after his red card? “I don’t need to talk to Bellingham. He is a player who tries to give everything on the field. Valencia’s red was because he was a bit frustrated. But he didn’t insult anyone.”

What are your thoughts on Rodrygo’s low goal numbers? “He’s good for what he brings to the team, for what he does for the team in terms of effort, despite being a little down in terms of finishing. If he didn’t worry us before, he’s not going to worry us now. The main thing for him is to keep going as he is.

Would you say that it would be a great season if you were to win two or three trophies (Super Cup, LaLiga & Champions League): Uf, speaking about the end of the season now... I think for now we can say we’ve done well, we want to continue. There are two/three months to go, there is a long way to go. Until now I can’t criticise anyone in the team.

What are the key reasons behind managing such a young squad? The key point is that I have very good players with a lot of quality who want to learn and improve and be part of this club. They put in everything they can to do well and help the team. This is the most important thing, they have to accept the situation and give everything to do well and help the team.

Have you spoken to Tchouameni after Diakhaby’s injury? All of us have been very close to Mouctar Diakhaby. We have all spoken to him and we are very sorry for what happened. We are confident he will return. Injuries unfortunately are quite frequent, but we’ve been close to him and I think he will come back well. We wish him all the best.

Would you like a stopped clock? I think they’ll do it sooner or later, not for what happened on Saturday, but in general. It’s complicated so maybe ball-in-play time could be a solution.

Would you like referees to speak after games? The truth is that I don’t know what is better or worse! I don’t know if it’s good for the referees to have to explain themselves... there are better people than me to say what’s best for them.

What do you want to improve on tactically for the upcoming game? It was difficult for us, they had a lot of opportunities. Lunin did really well. I think we are ready to show improvement. They are very dangerous in transitions, tomorrow will be a different game, where they will play more in transition than us, so we need to manage this.

Have you made your team aware they can’t step off the gas? Of course, we evaluated the game, where we can improve. I think we’re ready to show we have improved in terms of defence. They have fast players, but Rudiger is back to help us in that sense but the game has to be complete, only then can we win.

Ancelotti in 2024: “It would be a very long speech! I like my job very much, especially here at Real Madrid. My job is more suffering than happiness, because there are many situations you have to handle. Even winning, there are people who aren’t happy, and that affects you. You can share happiness with others, but not suffering, that’s just for you. I’m at the best place in the world for my job, but I have more suffering than happiness.

Do RMTV’s videos affect your team? I’m surprised you don’t realise that it’s freedom of expression. They just express an opinion as you do.

Real Madrid take on RB Leipzig on Wednesday March 6 with kick off at 3:00 p.m. ET / 12:00 p.m. PT at the Estadio Santiago Bernabéu. Los Blancos go into the game with a slim, 1-0 lead on aggregate after Brahim’s solo goal in the first leg saw them leave Germany with a win. You can follow the second leg live with AS USA.