Ancelotti responds to Xavi: ‘I would always want to win the Champions League’

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Real Madrid coach comes to terms with his Barça counterpart’s words

Xavi Hernandez’s words on Monday about the League’s presumed greater justice regarding the Champions League were answered a day later by Carlo Ancelotti. “I would always want to win the Champions League. La Liga is very important, but the Champions League is the most important competition. They are different. One is 38 games and the other is much less. Sometimes it is a 180-minute draw. That’s where the small details matter,” said the coach of the fourteen-time king of Europe in the preview of the duel that the whites will measure against Shakhtar Donetsk, corresponding to the third day of their fetish match.

The Barca coach’s statements stung Real Madrid fans and Ancelotti, a great spokesperson for the Chamartín club, did not hesitate to reply to his counterpart. “Sometimes it’s surprising what we’ve been able to do,” said the Real Madrid coach, for whom relying on luck as an explanation for his team’s successes in the top continental competition is an excuse for a sore loser. “It’s not luck or bad luck. Sometimes talking about luck hides the problems you have and the merit of the rival. When I say we were unlucky against Osasuna, it means I understand the problems with the ball and the good performance of the rival hide. Talking about small details is important. In the Champions League they can score three goals in a few minutes, as happened to me. It can also happen to you in a semi-final. Small details are controlled with a very strong mentality. Real Madrid is the team that has paid the most attention to these details,” he explained.

Ancelotti sees his sport as a collective art in which numerous factors have to be assessed. “Playing good football is a lot. It’s not just playing with the ball, it’s also good defense. Being successful means doing things right. You can’t be successful if you only do one thing right, especially not in the Champions League. It’s easier to say that the champions are won by the best,” said Reggiolo’s coach.

Ancelotti stressed the importance of Real Madrid’s win against Shakhtar on Wednesday, especially after the Whites suffered their first setback of the season against Osasuna in the League. “It’s very important to get nine points. We are well prepared for this. It was not a good game on Sunday and we need to change our attitude. We want to improve and show a different identity,” explained the Italian, confirming the withdrawal of Ceballos, with a hamstring problem, and Courtois, affected by citalgia, as well as the return of Modric and Lucas Vázquez.

He showed respect for Shakhtar, a team that is struggling because of the war in Ukraine but that has managed to score four points in the first two rounds of the Champions League. “It’s a team that has a lot of problems while training, when traveling. It started very well in the Champions League. He has a style similar to last year, who wants to play and is vertical. They have very fast and strong strikers on the counter,” said the Real Madrid coach.

He downplayed the criticism of Benzema’s missed penalty against Osasuna. “Everyone can have an opinion. If Karim is not up to his level, there can be opinions. This is normal in football. It doesn’t affect us or Karim,” said Ancelotti, who was exhaustive with Hazard when asked if the Belgian had asked him to play more minutes. “Every player knows his situation. Everyone asks me for an explanation and I have to explain it to them. Eden has not spoken to me because he knows the situation very well and he has other players in front of him. It has a lot of competition. Some play less than others. His situation is very clear.”

Dani Carvajal also rebelled against Xavi Hernández’s controversial statements about the importance of the League and the Champions League. “Opinions are subjective. I think if you’ve won five of the last nine Champions Leagues, luck is on the sidelines,” said the Real Madrid winger in the preview of the match his team will measure against Shakhtar.

Much of the Leganés right-hander’s performance revolved around those statements by the Barca coach that set Real Madrid on fire two weeks before the first classic of the season. “Football is about results and whoever scores the most goals and the one who concedes the least wins. We’ve been the best at that. It’s complicated to talk about justice. They are results. We had a great League and a Champions League with ups and downs, but we were the best at important moments. There is only justice or injustice if Madrid win the Champions League. If someone else wins, the meritocracy is fair,” says Carvajal, more of a warrior in this field than Ancelotti.

The winger also spoke of the doubts that have arisen over Benzema’s form. “We know what the football world looks like. You go from heaven to hell in two days and vice versa,” said Carvajal, who has full confidence in his partner. “I don’t think Karim will be affected much by scoring or missing a penalty, he would be angry on Sunday, but that’s all, he is the best in his position. Hopefully I can score two or three goals tomorrow,” he said. he.

Source: La Verdad

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