MADRID: Real Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti on Wednesday demanded a rapid reaction from his team after their capitulation against rivals Barcelona in the Spanish Super Cup final.
The Catalans lifted the trophy on Sunday in Saudi Arabia with an emphatic 5-2 victory and Madrid’s Italian coach welcomed Thursday’s Copa del Rey last 16 clash against Celta Vigo as a chance for his team to bounce back.
“It’s a great opportunity to leave behind the bad game we played, which hurt us a lot, but has not sunk us,” Ancelotti told a news conference Wednesday.
“We want to react, it’s good this game for us against a team that plays well, the team can have a strong reaction after that bad game the other day…
“It was a step backwards, but we have to keep going forward, we’re in a good position in all competitions.”
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Ancelotti said his team made “a heap of errors” against Barcelona but had looked for solutions in the days since ahead of Celta’s visit to the Santiago Bernabeu.
The coach did not want to single out any players for criticism after the thrashing but said the whole team “lacked commitment” in defence.
“The evaluation of the game was a bad game in a defensive sense in every line of the team, not just in attack, or in midfield, or in defence, and there’s nothing more to add,” added Ancelotti.
The veteran coach, who led Real Madrid to La Liga and Champions League triumphs last season, has been criticised in the Spanish media after the defeat in Jeddah.
“I’m not following the wave of criticism – one day you’re the best in the world, and the next the stupidest (coach) of all,” added the 65-year-old.
“Luckily my experience in this world has given me the balance that I need not to follow the wave… I’m not the best in the world but neither am I the stupidest.”
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