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Transcript: Carlo Ancelotti's Post-Match Press Conference Following Real Madrid's Penalty Shootout Win

Carlo Ancelotti spoke to the media after Real Madrid beat Atletico Madrid in the UEFA Champions League.

Apratim Banerjee

IMAGO / NurPhoto

Real Madrid beat Atletico Madrid in a dramatic penalty shootout to reach the UEFA Champions League quarter-finals. Los Blancos won the first leg 2-1, but Atleti made it 1-0 within the first minute of the second leg on March 12.

With the aggregate score level at 2-2 following after 120 minutes, the clash headed to penalties. Los Merengues managed a 4-2 win in the shootout to book their slot in the last eight of the competition.

Carlo Ancelotti addressed the media after the nerve-wracking game (via Real Madrid).

Q: On the second leg

Ancelotti: It was a difficult game, and even more so when you concede inside a minute. After that they dropped in to defend and looked to catch us out on the counter. The priority was to have effective possession of the ball and not complicate the game again. It was an evenly-matched tie and Atlético are one of the best in the world defensively. They're well drilled, defend and work hard for each other, and we had a great chance through that incredible Mbappé move but we missed the penalty and it was level until the shootout. That's when we sent our best taker up first, and then Rüdiger went last because he scored against City.

Q: On his gameplan

Ancelotti: I tried to explain our priority, which was not to complicate things by losing the ball in bad areas where they could catch you out of position. If they had made it 2-0, the game would have been very tough. We were better in that sense in the second half of extra-time. We always have to look to improve and work towards that. I've already explained what our approach was in this match. It looked like we needed to score a goal and we were never out of the tie at any point.

Q: On the penalty shootout

Ancelotti: I have no idea what can make a difference in a penalty shootout. You have to pick the calmest guys you can. It's a lottery and it went our way. Atlético go out of the competition with their heads held high because they played at their very best. I was pretty calm about it all. When it's a lottery like that, you toss the coin and luckily it went our way.

Q: On Antonio Rudiger taking the final penalty

Ancelotti: We weren't sure whether to go with him or Endrick. I saw Endrick's face and I picked Rüdiger.

Q: On Julian Alvarez's disallowed penalty

Ancelotti: I think the referees had already spotted it on VAR when we realised. I didn't see it initially, but it looks like he did touch it with his left foot when I watched it back.

Q: On Eduardo Camavinga

Ancelotti: He brought out his best in the toughest of games. He's dropped off a bit in recent matches but he brought so much to the team today. Tchouameni was on a booking and I opted to change him because of the risk of the Atlético counters. Valverde and Camavinga played really well both offensively and defensively.

Q: On Ferland Mendy's injury

Ancelotti: I think it's a muscle issue because he felt a twinge in his leg. They'll assess him in the next few days.

Q: On Vinicius Jr taking the penalty won by Kylian Mbappe

Ancelotti: It was already decided Vini Jr. would take it and unfortunately he missed. He wasn't going to take one in the shootout but he asked me to come off because he was very tired.

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Apratim Banerjee
APRATIM BANERJEE

Apratim is an experienced sports journalist having covered European and World Football, Combat Sports, Olympic Sports, and more for online media publications like Sportskeeda, EssentiallySports, and more. He is currently an MSc. in Sport Marketing student at Loughborough University, London.

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