Ancelotti says Real Madrid played “bad game” vs Leipzig
Manager Carlo Ancelotti admitted Real Madrid had a ” bad game” in their 1-1 Champions League round-of-16 draw with RB Leipzig on Wednesday.
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“Bad game, with low intensity”
Vinícius Júnior drew first blood in the 65th minute at the Santiago Bernabeu, coming from Jude Bellingham’s pass.
However, Willi Orbán put on an equalizer for Leipzig three minutes later to scare Madrid.
“It was a bad game, with low intensity,” Ancelotti said.
“The psychological aspect conditioned our game. We played against an opponent with quality, who played with nothing to lose, and we had the brakes on from the start until the end. We suffered, but the important thing was to get to the quarterfinals, and we’re there.”
“The idea was to press more, with energetic midfielders, but we played with the brakes on,” Ancelotti said. “No pressing, slow with the ball, not direct, with sideways passes.”
Quarterfinals-bound
Still, Real Madrid entered the Champions League quarterfinals after a 2-1 aggregate win.
The Los Blancos join Bayern Munich, Paris Saint-Germain, and Manchester City in the final eight.
Ancelotti’s side also tops LaLiga table.
“It wasn’t a good night, obviously. It’s my fault. Sometimes in the Champions League, this can happen. It happened to us against Chelsea at home [in April 2022]. But sometimes a bad game can see you eliminated,” Ancelotti said,
“We have a seven-point lead in the league, and we’re in the quarterfinals. If we’d been offered that at the start of the season, we’d have taken it.”
“I might have been wrong with the starting 11. We must be self-critical and improve. … The criticism today is totally deserved. The whistles [from the crowd] at half-time were deserved.”
