Real Madrid boss has called on his players to improve their defensive solidity ahead of their trip to Villarreal.
Los Blancos have enjoyed a fine run of form, winning their last three games in all competitions and netting 18 goals in the process. But they have failed to keep a clean sheet in La Liga and the manager wants to see the defending improve starting with the trip to El Madrigal.
Speaking at his press conference, he told reporters: “The teams that have a better chance of winning trophies are those that are solid on the pitch. Not conceding goals is a good sign. At the end of last year we were solid and that’s why we won trophies. Looking for defensive solidity works to our advantage.”
The Italian spoke about the competition for places in the squad after confirming Pepe and Fabio Coentrao would sit out due to injury. He told journalists competition makes players train and perform better.
“It’s something that’s very good to have within the team. It makes the players train better so as to try to be in the team. At a big team, competition is necessary. We have a lot of matches and the same eleven players can’t always play,” he stated.
After coming in for stick for not scoring enough in recent games, Ancelotti stuck up for Karim Benzema and tried to take the pressure of his striker.
“Benzema shouldn’t be worried if a team-mate scores; he should be happy. This team has a lot of goals in it and Karim doesn’t have pressure on him to score goals. He has to help the team to play better and look for attacking solutions,” he said.
