Real Madrid head coach Carlo Ancelotti said "I liked the team" after it suffered its third Champions ... \[+\] League defeat this season against Liverpool at Anfield.
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Real Madrid head coach Carlo Ancelotti [said](https://as.com/futbol/champions/ancelotti-sobre-mbappe-hay-una-medicina-que-es-ser-paciente-n/) "I liked the team" after it suffered its third Champions League defeat this season against Liverpool at Anfield.
Kylian Mbappe and Mohamed Salah missed penalties on either side of the ball, but second half goals from Alexis Mac Allister and Cody Gakpo were enough for the Premier League and UCL group phase leaders to win 2-0 against the reigning champions and stay on top of the pile.
Ancelotti admitted that the match "was difficult" and said that Anfield "is the toughest stadium in Europe".
"We competed and we were in the game until the penalty... but then, we lowered the level. In the first half we defended well and we could take better advantage of the counterattacks, for example.
"I liked the team, because we competed well against the most difficult opponent on the continent. The result is correct, they deserved to win. And the situation doesn't change much, because if you win today and the top eight win... We are going to qualify and we are going to compete for the title as we did last year. The path is this, to be a team again," Ancelotti insisted in a post-match interview with Movistar.
Mbappe has been widely-criticized for his display with it believed by many that he lacks confidence.
Ancelotti didn't want to agree that this was the case, saying: "Like the others, he has fought and competed. It is true that he missed the penalty and it will be a difficult moment for him, but he has everyone's support. He will come out of this moment. He's disappointed, it's normal, but we have to look forward."
At his press conference, Ancelotti said that Mbappe needs to "keep working" because "everything is fine".
"Things are not going his way, nothing happens. He's an extraordinary player and the goals will come," Ancelotti promised.
Ancelotti didn't regret his team's approach, stating that "we defended well, there was order, we came out in transitions".
He's also not afraid of being left out of the top eight of the league phase, who automatically head to the last 16 without the need for a play off.
"Today's match was not decisive, because reaching the first eight was already very difficult. You have to get into the top 24 and compete, as we did last year," reminding some with short memories perhaps of who the king of Europe is.