I hope my players don’t sleep tomorrow, and we are not thinking about transfers
Ancelotti: I hope my players don’t sleep tomorrow, and we are not thinking about transfers
The coach said: “We all know Getafe’s style of play: strong and intense football, full of duels, well organized, with clear ideas. We are ready. As we get closer to the end of the season, the importance of the matches increases. We have a lot at stake, and we want to continue our journey.”
He added: “Tomorrow’s starting lineup will depend on the fatigue that the players experienced on Sunday night. Everyone has recovered well, but some are still tired, which is natural. We will see tomorrow who will play.”
Regarding the status of Mbappe and Mendy: “They are not ready for tomorrow’s match, but they will train these days and may be ready for the match on Saturday (Cup final). Mbappe is disappointed due to the injury because he cannot help the team. He is doing everything to be there on Saturday.”
On his future: “I have no grudge against anyone or anything. I love this job and hope it lasts as long as possible. If I retire one day, I will thank the club and tip my hat. In football, anything is possible. Nothing surprises me, and everything is possible.”
He continued: “The problems this season were clear: we lost two key pieces in defense (Militao and Carvajal), and it was difficult to compensate for them. We changed the game to include players with different characteristics, and we struggled to find balance. We hope to find it now. If we don’t, it will be difficult for us to win.”
He added: “Endrick? He is progressing very well and has taken on a significant role in the team because there are also matches where we need his strength and quality. Fran Garcia? He has improved. He has played more and has performed well almost all the time. In some games, I put Camavinga in due to the different characteristics they both have; Camavinga is more accustomed to playing deep, and sometimes when he plays with Vinicius on the outside, Fran finds it harder to show his quality.”
He emphasized: “Winning La Liga and the Copa del Rey depends on beating Barcelona. We have to come out of the next match strong and focus on the cup final. We are confident that we can do it, and we can achieve it; something must change here in this regard, and we will change it.”
He noted: “The club knows that this year has been more complicated than last year. Together, we face difficulties, but I am still very happy, very pleased, and I suffer from a lot of pressure, but that is always the case. You see success very close, and it is natural for the tension to increase, but tension is fuel for me; it doesn’t bother me; it gives me more energy to think of more things.”
He continued: “We never thought about transfers here during the season; the club always thinks about transfers at the end of the season.”
Regarding the match schedule: “I don’t complain; we didn’t play Saturday against Bilbao so we could play Tuesday. It is good because we have enough time to recover, and we don’t have to travel. It might be better not to play tomorrow at 9:30 PM because many people are asleep at that time. I hope my players don’t sleep tomorrow.”
He concluded: “It seems that Barcelona is better than us, but the final is something unpredictable; it seems to me that turning Real Madrid into the underdog in the final is a bit exaggerated.”
