Athletic Bilbao vs Real Madrid discussion

Carlo Ancelotti gave a pre-match interview ahead of tomorrow’s clash against Athletic. On a day marked by the death of Luis Aragonés, the Italian coach wanted to dedicate a few words to the former Athlético player and national team coach. “I feel the loss; he was very important in Spanish and world football. He was a really important figure. Spain started to win with him in 2008. Everyone likes to remember him because he was a very important figure for football in general”. Ancelotti also confirmed the return of Varane to the squad list and praised Athletic’s strengths: “They’re a great team who are playing really well. We’ll have to give more than 100% to win in San Mamés”.

The match in San Mamés will kick off a month of February for Real Madrid that includes decisive matches in La Liga, the Champions League and the Copa del Rey. “Athletic are a great team, I like how they’re playing because they’re a dangerous team that plays really dynamic football. Valverde is doing a fantastic job. We’ll have to do our best. They’re an energetic team that gives their all. We’ve won a lot of matches in January and tomorrow we have to give 100% of everything, of energy, focus and good football. Athletic are one of the teams playing the best in Spain”, said Ancelotti.

Tomorrow’s clash against Athletic will be a way to test the team’s form: “It’s a good test for the table. They’re a strong team and they don’t need to prove it. We have a period of important games ahead. January was a really good month and if we’re able to repeat what we did in January in February we can have a really important future”, said the Italian coach, who also mentioned the game time: “We had the time needed to prepare for the match in San Mamés. I like playing on Sunday at 9:00 p.m. Playing before or after the rival isn’t that important”.

When asked about Bale, who will not travel to Bilbao, he replied: “He won’t be available tomorrow because he didn’t train with the group all week. He did a good job in the arena today. He’ll train tomorrow and he’ll be ready for Wednesday. He doesn’t need another preseason, the problem he had was very small, he just needs to train and gain confidence. I’m not worried about his problems. He got injured and was out for 20 days. Then he played well and he had a small issue now, but not an injury”.

Ancelotti also discussed who will replace the Welshmen on the starting eleven: “We have two options to replace Bale: Jesé, who is doing well and who we have a lot of confidence in, or Di María on the right and Illara as central midfielder”. Regarding Varane’s return, he said: “He’s on the squad list because he trained with the team this week. His knee has responded well. We have to be cautious with him because he can’t play every three days. If he plays we have to let him rest a week so that his knee doesn’t swell”.

The coach was asked about the rumours regarding the transfer of Casemiro and Coentrão: “Coentrão wasn’t going to leave because it was clear for him and for us that he was staying. He’s doing well and he played a good match the other day. The same with Casemiro, he’s had less of a chance to play but he’s young and he likes being here because he believes that it can improve his skill and he wasn’t thinking about leaving”.

Ancelotti also spoke about the new Santiago Bernabéu stadium: “A fantastic stadium, I saw the project. I would like to enjoy it, of course”. The coach concluded with more words of praise for Luis Aragonés: “He created a new model for football, like Sacchi did in Milan and with Ajax in the 70s. He contributed something new to football and committed to it”.

pass the ball when somebody is in a better position to score

Giggity5313 wrote:Extremely important game
We have a real chance at la liga this season and we cant blow it away

Valkyrja wrote:will Ronaldo be available for the Copa game ?