look news india
New Delhi, September 21 (HS). Real Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti said on Friday that he is not interested in the criticism his team is receiving at the start of the current season.
Although results have been in their favour, Real Madrid have ridden their luck in recent matches, with Real Sociedad hitting the post three times against them last week, while in the Champions League, Stuttgart created more chances, although two goalkeeping errors handed Madrid a 3-1 win.
Asked about the lack of balance in midfield and defence ahead of Saturday's home match against Espanyol, Ancelotti insisted he was more interested in results.
“It doesn't bother me that people say Madrid plays badly because I see that our fans are happy with our performance,” he said.
“I think Real Madrid fans are used to rock and roll football and not to a lot of passes. And above all they like winning more than playing well,” the coach said.
The Italian also dismissed claims that his squad looks unbalanced, with the likes of Jude Bellingham, Vinicius, Kylian Mbappe and Rodrygo providing more attacking prowess while they lack a holding midfielder due to Eduardo Camavinga's ankle injury.
“Balance is a collective task that I can do with two forwards or three. Bringing in a new midfielder doesn't mean you have more balance. The debate could be what is Bellingham: a forward or a midfielder? We don't know,” he said.
“I like to see my team defend well, not waste time in possession and stay vertical. It's difficult to define what beautiful football is,” he said.
Ancelotti has both Jude Bellingham and Aurelien Tchouameni available to face Espanyol, who travel to Madrid in good form after winning 3-2 at home against Alaves last weekend thanks to a hat-trick from Javi Puado.
Espanyol are a team that traditionally perform poorly in Madrid and anything other than a comfortable win at home would be a surprise for them.