Ancelotti: “It’s nonsense to say that Benzema has been erased”

The uncompromising defense of Karim Benzema, whose absence against Cádiz generates not a few suspicions about whether the Frenchman is reserving himself for the Qatar World Cup, and of Vinicius, accused from some sectors of being a provocateur, marked Carlo’s press conference Ancelotti in the preview of this Thursday’s league match against Cádiz, the last one before the break for the universal competition.

«The first disappointment is Karim because he arrives as a Golden Ball at the World Cup without the minutes he needs to have a good condition; it is nonsense to say that he has been erased », settled the Italian coach in reference to the fifth absence of Benzema. “He does not have a serious problem, he has not stopped because he has continued to train individually, but his feelings were not good to play a match.”

Along these lines, Ancelotti made it clear that “at no time” has he thought that any of his players have thought of reserving for the World Cup because he believes “in his professionalism and seriousness.” “Until they are here they are going to give everything. I don’t see that in training, which is very competitive and with games on a small field, where tackles are more frequent, they remove the leg. A month ago the team was doing very well and the World Cup was very close too », he stressed.

Around with Vinicius, Carletto regretted the situation. «It is happening that it seems that he is a provocateur and he is the one who receives the most fouls, the most slaps, the most pushes. This is reality and it seems something else. You have to teach everyone, you don’t have to disrespect him in football or personally, but it’s something that he should go through with all the players. Fair play is an important part of football,” Ancelotti said. However, Carletto did not hide that the Brazilian must “improve” in certain attitudes on the field.

intensity dip

Around the time of the team’s downturn, Ancelotti believes it is because the intensity has decreased due to playing many games. “This is noticeable against teams that do not play in Europe and have fewer games and can play at a higher level, it is quite normal. The difference is less noticeable when you play against those from European competitions », he remarked.

The fact of having rotated little is not considered key. “Rotation is an important aspect, but you also have to consider the dynamics of the players. How am I going to remove Rodrygo or Valverde when they score all the games, I think we have rotated a lot », he detailed.

Lastly, Ancelotti praised Marco Asensio, who, surprisingly, will be on Luis Enrique’s list for the World Cup on Friday. “I think he has been the best in recent games, in terms of assists and work. He has had a strong character in times of difficulty and I think what he is doing on the pitch is a well-deserved award».