Carlo Ancelotticoach of Real Madriddid not rule out Karim Benzema for this Saturday’s match (9:00 p.m.) against Getafe, although he did acknowledge that the Frenchman is “a little loaded” and did not train with his teammates this Friday, at the same time that he insisted that the The team must “be more focused” on the defensive aspect, after having been “vague at times”.
«Benzema played the 90 minutes of two games in a row after a month and today he was still a bit charged, but he is not ruled out for tomorrow. If tomorrow is fine, Karim will play, “the Italian coach advanced in the press conference prior to the duel against the azulones.
However, Ancelotti warned of a possible rest of the ‘9’, since he does not consider taking risks with the Frenchman in a key period of the season. “The injury has stopped him a bit, but I see Karim as always, I have no worries, he is doing what he always does”, he stressed.
The Italian predicted a “complicated” meeting against Getafe and in which they must “get the best, prepare it well”, taking into account “the difficulties of last year”. «Getafe has not started so well, but now they are playing with intensity, good organization. Winning there is not easy, it will cost us, but we have the confidence to get the best out of it », he analyzed.
And to fight for those three points at the Alfonso Pérez Coliseum, Ancelotti pointed to the “important” defensive aspect, which was “the key to success last year and could be this year. We have to be more focused, we have done well, but not as we need,” urged the coach, who asked his players for “collective commitment” in that facet, for “moments” neglected by the squad “in recent games.”
«The team was not always compact, but we are talking about it, it is not a general relaxation, it is moments. The fact of doing very well in attack may make us think that the offensive aspect is enough, but in today’s football it is not like that. That things go well on the offensive end makes us a bit lazy on defense. But the team has shown many times that concentrated behind it is very difficult to mark him », he added.
A complete Madrid
In addition, although he acknowledged that “sometimes” they have to “defend better” -they have not kept a clean sheet on any occasion in the League this season-, he praised the “psychological aspect of this team. It is what worries me the least, because they have shown that they are very strong in that », he remarked.
In the casualties section, the Italian confirmed that Courtois “is improving”, although ruled out for Getafe. “We have to think about whether traveling to Warsaw can create problems for him, but for the Clásico he will be sure,” he valued, before assuring that “when you play every three days you have to take into account the problem of injuries”, something that “ so far” are “handled well”.
The one who will be available for the match against the team from the south of Madrid is the German Toni Kroos, still pending renewal with the white club, since his contract ends at the end of this season. «He is very well physically and mentally, he trains well, with a smile on his face, he never gets angry. He never feels the pressure of the games, it’s strange to me because he’s never nervous. The renewal is in his hand, if he renews, all Madrid fans will be happy », Ancelotti said about his situation.
The Italian coach highlighted the “very important” role of Antonio Rüdiger in the team, despite the fact that he has only played five games as a starter, out of the ten in which he took to the pitch. «He is a world-class central defender, like Militao, Alaba, or Nacho, who plays little. I can’t say that he is world level Nacho, but he plays very well. It may be that in the future, since he has rested more, (Nacho) plays more than the others », he updated him on the competition between Real Madrid central defenders.
“The footballers are not so sincere”
Asked about fatigue and the possibility that players with options to go to the World Cup, which starts in just 40 days, stop their performance thinking about the sporting event, Ancelotti does not believe that this will happen, because the footballers “are not so sincere, if they are tired they say they are fine. I prefer a player who is tired and says he wants to stop, but the truth is that only two players in my career have told me ‘better not put me on’: one was Pepe, in a Champions League final, and the other Seedorf, in a game League”, he confessed.
Finally, Ancelotti advanced that this season will see a Real Madrid «that does not have a single identity. There are games where we need more advanced pressure, and others where we will have more of an advantage with a low block. We will see a Real Madrid that can have the ball, against it, in a low block, a complete Real Madrid. I don’t like a team with a single identity », he settled.
