“Few here thought that I could be in this press room”. In the second response to the press conference, Carlo Ancelotti sent a message to those who listened to him. The Italian coach vindicated himself before playing in a new semi-final, the third in a row since he returned to Real Madrid. That’s how overwhelming the weight of history is, as he himself recalled when analyzing Bayern. “We have a lot of respect, they have had a spectacular tie against Arsenal and we have to look at that, the quality and history of this club, which is more or less the same as ours. And the history in the Champions League counts for a lot,” he declared.
There is one doubt above any other in their lineup this Wednesday: the name of the player who will accompany Antonio Rüdiger in the center of defense. And from his answer to a question about Tchouaméni, it seems that he could be the Frenchman, who would take the place of Nacho and Militao. “Tchouaméni will play. Where? “I don’t know,” he commented.. The Italian is not going to seat either Valverde or Kroos, and it would be very strange to see him do without Camavinga, so the only position that remains free is that of central defender. “Is Tchouaméni undefeated as a starter? Well, we won in Manchester on penalties without him,” he joked. “He will play,” he insisted.
The coach announced that he will not improvise. “There are two types of coaches, those who do nothing and those who harm their team. “I try to be among the first,” he admitted with a laugh.. “I know that I have been unfair in all the games, that is my role. “I can’t think about that.”
“I went to bed with regret”
Furthermore, the transalpine player explained the situation of Jeremy de León, the Puerto Rican footballer who has traveled with Madrid to Manchester and Munich despite not being called up.. Questioned about the theories of some fans, who believe that he does it out of a kind of superstition, Ancelotti was clear: “It is not because of a cabal. There are 19 players available and we need 10 and 10 to train. “We took Jeremy because talking to Raúl they told us that he trains well, is very serious and has a lot of quality.”
Previously, Fede Valverde had explained the reasons that led him to say “no” to taking a penalty during the shoot-out against Manchester City. “I went to bed with regret because I could have had the opportunity to leave that mark on Madrid, but I am one of those who likes to qualify no matter what and there are times when one has to put that pride aside and say ‘I’m not as prepared as I thought.’ Fatigue played tricks on me and the best thing that came to mind was to tell the coaching staff that I was not prepared to take the penalty. In the future I would love to prepare so that this does not happen again and be mentally prepared to shoot,” he reflected.
Monte Carlo Ancelotti’s redemption in press conference