Real Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti spoke after the defeat to Liverpool in the UEFA Champions League at Anfield to defend star man Kylian Mbappé by saying, “Let him keep working, everything is fine. Things are not working out for him, nothing is wrong. He is an extraordinary player and the goals will come.”
Ancelotti on his feelings
“To be honest, the result is correct. They deserved to win. They have a good dynamic at the moment, they are on fire, they play with intensity. The approach was correct, we defended well, looking for opportunities in transitions... and we missed chances. We competed until the penalty, when we could have equalized. The team fought well. This is the way forward, to be a team, a competitive team that fights. There are things to improve, that’s obvious. And we are going to do it.”
Ancelotti on handling a situation like Mbappé
“It has happened many times that strikers find it hard to score and that disappoints them. There is a medicine, which is to be patient. Be patient, because things will soon work out.”
Ancelotti on whether Mbappé lacks confidence
“Maybe a little, but the idea should be to play simple, this is transitory. You can’t judge everything by missing a penalty.”
Ancelotti on regrets with his selection
“No, no. We defended well, there was order, we came out in transitions ..... And we had them. The approach was correct.”
Ancelotti on whether qualification is at risk
“If we continue like this... today’s game was not decisive, because reaching the first eight was already very difficult. We have to get into the top 24 and compete. As we did last year.”
Ancelotti on injury concerns
“Last year was not much different. We had this kind of problem... today Camavinga went down. Hopefully in the next game Tchouameni and Rodrygo can come back. It’s a difficult moment, but we have to hold on. And we saw last year that from injuries, we get opportunities.”
Ancelotti on Brahim and Güler
“Brahim has delivered, playing in an unusual position. Leading and pressing... Arda also did a great job offensively, although he could have had more success. He could have made better decisions. And he is young and lacks experience.”