A furious Carlo Ancelotti has hit out at Real Madrid’s “bad attitude” after Kylian Mbappe’s La Liga debut ended in a disappointing 1-1 draw with Mallorca.
The French player scored on his debut in the UEFA Super Cup against Atalanta a few days earlier, but was absent against Mallorca, who could only draw against a Madrid side that finished the match with ten men after Ferland Mendy was sent off in stoppage time.
At the end of the match, Ancelotti admitted that his team’s balance was totally wrong and criticised his players for not having approached the match with the right mentality.
“Last year I was happy with some draws, but not today,” he said at the post-match press conference. “We could have done much better.”
“I don’t want to make excuses. We had to do better, with more attitude. You learn from these games. It’s clear where the problem is. We started the game well, but it wasn’t a good game. We have to defend better. We need more balance. We’ve already said it, we’re very offensive and balance is essential,” added the Italian.
Mbappé has been criticised for his difficulties in linking up with Vinicius Junior and Rodrygo – the former assisting the latter for Madrid’s goal – and Ancelotti acknowledged that his forwards need to be more aware of how they influence the whole team.
“Sometimes they swap positions. Sometimes one or the other takes the position, depending on how they are. The problem is that the team was too open. We have to concentrate more, as we usually do. It is not a physical or mental problem,” explained Ancelotti.
“When we win the ball back, we all have to think together. You might think it’s a problem for the forwards, but it could be a problem for the defence, or for the midfielders. It’s not a problem for one, two or three. It’s a problem for a team that didn’t understand that this was a key aspect in this game. Mallorca played a great game defensively. The draw is correct,” he concluded.
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