MADRID, 30 Mar. (EUROPA PRESS) –
Real Madrid coach, Carlo Ancelotti, has assured that the team faces “with confidence” this Sunday’s match at the Santiago Bernabéu against Athletic Club, which he does not believe is “thinking about the final” of the Copa del Rey in next week, and has revealed that Éder Militao returns to the squad, although “he still lacks football.”
“Militao returns tomorrow, which is the most important news. He is available. Obviously, he is not at 100%, he needs to play football, but he has recovered very well from the injury. He was injured against Athletic Club in the first round and returns against Athletic Club. It is great news for us. We have had bad luck in this break due to Courtois’ injury, but he will return soon,” he declared at a press conference.
In addition, he assured that they must “give time” to the Brazilian defender so that he is 100%. “We have to see it. It may be that tomorrow he will give him minutes and we have time until the 9th – first leg of the Champions League quarterfinals against Manchester City – to improve his condition. The knee is fine, he only needs football, getting used to playing again on a big field and with his teammates. He has recovered very well. We must give him the necessary time to return to his best level,” he indicated.
However, he did not deny that he is thinking about the possibility of lining him up alongside Rüdiger against City. “It could be no, it could be yes. I’m not saying it’s 50%-50%, it could be 70% no and 30% yes. Militao is a very important player, he helps us in many facets of the game: aerial ball, duel… He is not completely ruled out. If he is not there, there are not many options. If Militao is ruled out, Nacho or Tchouaméni will play, the doubt is there,” he explained.
The Italian coach also confirmed that the rest of the team, with the exception of Belgian Thibaut Courtois, “is fine.” “Those who have returned from the national teams have recovered well. We had a small problem with Camavinga, who trained normally today,” he said, before talking about Vinícius. “There is one thing that worries me about Vinícius, a lot, and that is that he cannot play tomorrow. That is what worries me,” he said.
Regarding the Ukrainian goalkeeper Andriy Lunin, he explained that “he has improved a lot”, especially because “he has had the opportunity to demonstrate his quality by playing.” “That has given him more confidence. His performance has been very good. He is a goalkeeper who has quality,” he explained.
On the other hand, he talked about what the last three months have been like with only two center backs available. “What has happened to us has been something strange, I think we have endured it well. Everyone has performed, Rüdiger the first, who is having a fantastic season; Nacho too, he has had some mistakes but has contributed a lot to the defense; also the times that Tchouaméni has played he has given a lot of performance there. We are the team that has conceded the fewest goals, and that means that the collective work has been very good,” he expressed.
“ATHLETIC WILL NOT BE THINKING ABOUT THE CUP FINAL”
On the other hand, the Madrid coach revealed that they have “good feelings for tomorrow’s game.” “We played against a team that is very good, that plays with a lot of intensity. Athletic Club is having a great season, is fighting for the ‘Champions’, it is a team that has a lot of individual and organizational quality… We arrived with all the world’s trust because I see the players well and in good shape,” he said.
Furthermore, he does not believe that Ernesto Valverde’s men will be distracted by next week’s Copa del Rey final. “Athletic Club has a week to prepare for the final and I think that tomorrow they are going to play at their best, because the ‘Champions’ objective is also very important for them. We don’t think they are thinking about playing in the final, but about coming to the Bernabéu to try to score points,” he explained.
In another order of things, Ancelotti did not want to talk about the future of Croatian Luka Modric. “Everyone is talking about next season except us. Luka is focused on this season, on finishing it well and winning, if possible. We will make future decisions when the season is over, now no one is interested in talking about his future,” he noted.
“The feeling I have is that I see him ready to fight at the end of the season. We all have the same thought of finishing the season well, we are in an optimal situation to get the best out of ourselves, and they think the same, they don’t think about the future for them,” he added.
The Reggiolo coach also revealed that he watched the Spain-Brazil match at the Bernabéu, “an entertaining, beautiful match, a friendly but very complicated match.” “I enjoyed it a lot,” he said, before evaluating Vinícius’ tears in the press room. “Vinícius is a very important issue, he takes it very seriously, which is what we all have to do,” he said.
Finally, he downplayed the latest statements by former Paraguayan goalkeeper José Luis Chilavert against Vinícius’ attitude. “It doesn’t make much sense to comment on what others who are not on the topic say, they talk for the sake of breathing air. You don’t have to take much into account what they say,” he concluded.