Real Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti dismissed doubts about his team and tactical approach on Tuesday following their first loss of the season in the Madrid derby.
After securing victories in their initial six matches, five in La Liga and one in the Champions League, Los Blancos suffered a decisive 3-1 defeat against their rivals Atletico Madrid at the Metropolitano on Sunday.
This loss enabled defending champions Barcelona to regain the lead in La Liga. The Catalans will face Mallorca later on Tuesday, while Real Madrid is set to host Las Palmas on Wednesday.
“I have to evaluate things with balance, equilibrium is important — luckily in my genetics I have that,” Ancelotti told a news conference.
“Putting everything in doubt when you’ve won six games out of seven, it seems a bit rash.”
The coach emphasized the importance of self-reflection for Madrid following their setback against Atletico. He noted that his assessment differed from that of many of his critics.
“When you are Real Madrid coach, criticism is normal when things don’t go well, it’s something that doesn’t affect me,” said Ancelotti.
“That said, you have to look self-critically at what we did well, which was a lot of things, and what we did badly, which was not much.”
Among the topics of discussion concerning Madrid was Ancelotti’s employment of a diamond midfield. In the match against Atletico, Jude Bellingham was positioned further forward alongside Rodrygo Goes, while Luka Modric and Toni Kroos were included in the starting lineup.
“The system is not perfect,” admitted the coach.
“Every system has its weakness. It allows us to be energetic and press high up the pitch, but sometimes we can be caught out from crosses because the midfielders don’t arrive to cover in time.”
“The weakness is evident, and it can be fixed.”
Spanish media reports suggest that Real Madrid may replace Carlo Ancelotti with Bayer Leverkusen coach Xabi Alonso, a former Real player who won the Champions League with the club
“He has great knowledge and the capacity to do it, I hope, he, Raul, and (Alvaro) Arbeloa can be Madrid coaches one day because I like them a lot,” said Ancelotti.
After his contract at the Santiago Bernabeu expires next summer, the Italian has committed to coach the Brazilian national team.
Ancelotti also verified the fitness of Brazilian winger Vinicius Junior, stating that a stomach issue had hindered his return from a hamstring injury suffered against Atletico on Sunday. He also mentioned that summer signing Arda Guler is back in good health.