Ancelotti: We are not 100% ready, and football has changed

Real Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti appeared in a press conference, to talk about tomorrow's confrontation against Borussia Dortmund, in the third round of the Champions League round.

The coach said: “Borussia Dortmund has changed its coach and so have some of the players. They maintain the idea of ​​intense football, and they play well and with good individuality. They are demanding competitors. They recently played the Champions League final against us.”

He added: “Football has changed. We know everything about the opposing team because we can watch the matches. There are no secrets. I have enough data about the teams we played with recently.”

He continued: “We are not yet 100% ready. We have achieved good results, but we have to improve our offensive and defensive play. Little by little we will do that.”

He stressed: “We have more difficulty in the possession game because we do not have players with the characteristics of playing in small spaces. They can take advantage of the open field. We are focusing on defending better, that is the key for this season. The team is less solid in this sense and we are working on that.”

He noted, “We have a physical problem. Not everyone is 100% ready. We have to work more tightly as a team.” The pressure up front was good, but we lack solidity in the middle. There the team loses some solidity.”

He added: “We are satisfied with Bellingham’s work. He works hard on the field and competes.” He fights and sacrifices. He did not score like last year. He scored many goals that no one expected. We have always scored and we will score because we have a lot of talent. The work he is doing is more important than the goals he scored last year."

He continued: “Playing with 3 defenders? The three centre-backs were good with the ball. Without the ball, there should have been a line of 4 defenders, as we have always done and will do. This team does not defend with five players.” In the end, when you win, you can do that, but as an idea there will always be four defenders.”

He added: “I would rather Mbappe score goals than apply pressure Mbappe is the same thing I asked from Benzema, which is to position well, be smart, and make quick movements as soon as he recovers the ball.”

He concluded: “Modric is a unique player, whether in the world Football or in our team. He has amazing experience and a unique quality in handling the ball and in his positioning in matches.”