Ancelotti: “The last game against Atlético hurt us a lot”

«It is an important competition. We want to do our best to win it. The team is doing well, they arrive with enthusiasm, enthusiasm, recovering players. We can plan a good game, taking into account that Atlético has hurt us in the first game we have played. “It's going to be a competitive and even match,” said the Reggiolo coach before the first of the third capital derbies that he will have to face in less than a month. “It is what it is. It's not that I like meeting Atlético because they are one of the best teams and it is always difficult to play against them. Atlético thinks the same. “The fans are going to enjoy these games,” explained Carletto in an appearance in which he avoided revealing which goalkeeper will be between the sticks.

The transalpine praised the figure of Simeone, with whom he met for the first time in the nineties, when both were still active as footballers and whom he has faced on 21 occasions from opposite benches. «We have a relationship of respect. We have spoken many times. He scored a goal for me with Lazio when I was coaching Juventus that allowed Lazio to recover points and win the championship. We are neighbors and sometimes we see each other, always with a lot of respect,” he said of his counterpart.

He was pleased with the progressive recovery of personnel, after a few weeks in which only bad news arrived from the infirmary, and welcomed the fact that during the Spanish Super Cup the conversations that the referees have with those responsible can be heard for the first time. of video arbitration. «The VAR has to be a support for the referee, but in the end the decision must always be made by the referee. If hearing the communication can improve the referee, that's fine with me, but it doesn't change anything for us,” he said.

Praise with a 'but'

He praised the role of Valverde, an all-rounder who this year is playing mainly as a midfielder. «Valverde is a complete midfielder who can play in many ways: as a winger, like when we won the Champions League, or as a pivot, like he is doing in this period. He is a very important player because in the same game he can play in different ways. “It is very difficult to find players on the market with this profile,” said Ancelotti, who, however, gave a 'but' to one of his favorite players.

«I think it can improve, it can have more character. He is a very humble person who understands that he is strong. This profile of humility in a certain way is good, but sometimes having a certain arrogance makes you stronger in character,” he said in a press conference in which he also focused on the figure of Rüdiger. «He is a very attentive defender, very concentrated, very strong with his head. He has many qualities. “He has experience because he has played in England and Italy, he has character, personality… He is a pessimistic defender who always thinks that something bad can happen and is always focused on the game,” he said before emphasizing that he has never had offers from teams. Saudis. “They've forgotten,” he joked.

Valverde would repeat the hunt for Morata in 2020

Federico Valverde had no qualms when it came to acknowledging that he would repeat the foul on Morata that cost him the red card in the final of the Spanish Super Cup played in 2020, but which was decisive for Real Madrid to end up lifting the trophy. «Yes, of course, I would. As long as it's for the team. If we're losing 3-0 I'm not going to make that play because it wouldn't make any sense. In that game it was a decisive play and if we had the same result I would do it again. “You always have to leave everything for the team,” said the Uruguayan midfielder during an appearance in which he stressed the enthusiasm with which the whites face a new confrontation with their capital rival. “It's another title, another derby among all those we have to face this month,” he said.

The storm of derbies promises to push the irreconcilable enemies to the limit, but Valverde prefers to see the positive side of the matter. «For me it is very nice to play these kinds of games. The most beautiful thing is to compete against the best and Atlético is one of the best, not only in Spain but in the world. We have to show a lot of character and a lot of desire,” he said in a press conference in which he expressed his happiness for the great moment he is going through playing as a midfielder in a double pivot.

«All my life I have played in that double five position. Today I have more opportunities to play because I play in several positions and that helps the team. I have to be ready for anything. As a right winger I could contribute more goals and assists and helped defend less, but this position is where I enjoy the most,” he analyzed.