Ancelotti clears the air on Real Madrid future – ‘Never going to be decided by me’

Real Madrid lock horns with Austrian outfit RB Salzburg on Wednesday night at the Santiago Bernabeu in their penultimate league-phase match of the 2024/25 UEFA Champions League.

Languishing in the 24th place in the standings, Los Blancos know that they cannot afford another slip-up if they are to avoid missing out on the knockout playoffs.

Ahead of the match tomorrow, manager Carlo Ancelotti spoke about how critical it is for him and his team to pick up all three points against Salzburg.

“It’s an important one, obviously, because there’s not long to go before the end of the league phase. It’s time to get as much as we can… and then we’ll see. Tomorrow’s game is vital. We’ll try to play well, like we did against Las Palmas,” said the Italian.

As things stand, Real Madrid are all but out of contention when it comes to a Top 8 finish and securing direct qualification to the knockout stages. On being asked if he believed that the Merengues still had a chance, the manager said:

“There are not many options, but the only one is to win the two remaining games. If we have to play in the Round of 32, we will play at 100 per cent. Given that the schedule will be even more demanding, but we’re used to it.”

On his future

Earlier this week, reports emerged claiming that Ancelotti had decided to leave Real Madrid at the end of the season, irrespective of how many trophies they win.

The rumours were quickly dismissed, with the man in question himself making it absolutely clear that he has no thoughts about leaving the Santiago Bernabeu.

“No… no… (laughs). I want to be very clear: the date of departure from this club is never going to be decided by me, never in my life. Someday that time will come, but I don’t know when it will be. It’s not for me to decide.

“It could be tomorrow (laughs), in a few games, a year, five years… Florentino will be here for four more years and my goal is to reach Florentino’s four years (laughs). And that way we can say goodbye together (laughs).”

On the team and the players

On being asked to name at what level the team was currently between 1 to 1000, Ancelotti remarked:

“It’s difficult to say. Offensively we are performing very well, but defensively we need to improve a lot. That will be the key to success this season. If we do that, we will fight until the end in all competitions.”

The 65-year-old was then asked if he felt that he did not always get the recognition he deserves for the success that he has had at Real Madrid. In response, he said:

“I don’t think so. I feel very much loved in all aspects: fans, club, media level. Everything. Sometimes it’s a bit exaggerated, but as I said the other day, I want to be quite objective. That’s all. I want to continue in my line.”

Following Real Madrid’s win against Las Palmas, Ancelotti hailed Kylian Mbappe as the ‘best centre-forward in the world’. On being asked if he always felt that it was the right position for the Frenchman, the manager stated:

“At the beginning he swapped positions more with Vinicius, because Vini also likes to play inside. But as the days went by… it decreased. Bellingham has moved away from the position and everything is going better.

“You don’t score goals from outside; you can do it, but you need more touches. If you play more on the inside, it’s enough with a run and a touch. And that’s what Mbappe has done many times. Because his greatest virtue is the run that he has.”

During his press conference today, Mbappe mentioned that sometimes he was thinking too much on the pitch, which led to problems. Giving his two cents on that, Ancelotti noted:

“You have to go back to basics, in situations like that. When a player isn’t able to bring out his best, he complicates the play. And this is wrong. You have to simplify, not complicate.”

When asked if he felt envious of Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola who was getting new signings this month, while Real Madrid being in a similar situation with injuries, are not signing anyone, Ancelotti said:

“No, not at all. We have a very complete squad and, taking into account what happened last year, when the departures raised the level of commitment, we found inspiration. We are ready for this year.”

Finally, talking about how he felt about the new UEFA Champions League format brought into practice from this season, he remarked:

“Still… it’s difficult to say. For now, the fact of playing two more matches makes me a bit more against it, but it’s something new and when something new comes, you have to evaluate it calmly. After these two games, we will evaluate it well.”

Source: AS