Real Madrid boss Carlo Ancelotti has said he wants his players to get back to winning ways against Espanyol today.
Los Blancos has suffered a dip in form at the start of 2015, losing to Valencia in La Liga last weekend and then against Atletico de Madrid in the first leg of their `Copa del Rey tie. They have a mountain to climb to overturn that 2-0 deficit and want to get their confidence back ahead of that tie by defeating the Catalan outfit at the Santiago Bernabeu.
“The players want to get back to winning ways. We have a slight advantage in La Liga and we would like to keep it. We want to start off a positive run of results. It would be good for our mood. It is the first home game of the year and we want to play just as we did when we closed out the year, and make our fans happy,” Ancelotto told reporters at a press conference ahead of the game.
Revealing his team news, the Italian stated Ronaldo would play having been rested for the game against Atletico. Sergio Ramos will sit out today’s game as he needs a breather too.
“I have spoken to him, just as I have spoken to all of the players. Each game we take the necessary decisions so that all of the players are in good condition. He was a little tired before the Atlético game and we chose to give him a little rest, so that he didn’t play 90 minutes. Tomorrow, he will be completely recovered, in good condition, and he is going to play,” Ancelotti commented.
He added: “Pepe was rested against Atlético. Now I am going to give Ramos a little rest in order to avoid problems.”
