“Vini Jr. is the most defining player in world football right now”

“Winning at Anfield is not easy and doing it in such a way is even more complicated,” said the coach.

Carlo Ancelotti appeared in the Anfield press room following the first leg of the Champions League round of 16 tie once morest Liverpool. The coach analyzed the match: “Winning at Anfield is not easy and to do it in such a way even more complicated. We are very happy with that. The team has shown that they are progressing and that they started February at a good level following a complicated January. The season doesn’t stop and we have to stay on top. We are satisfied and we have confidence to be good”.

“We suffered a lot at the start of the game, but in the second half we made the difference. We didn’t expect to start like this, but as almost always happens with this team, we kept a cool head and came in little by little. small in the game with the quality we have. The attack was very effective and we created a lot of problems when we knew how to get out of their pressure. We fixed the defensive aspect and in the second half we made the difference. We looked for the men in front, who were very efficient tonight”.

The course of the playoff

“We took the lead in the first 90 minutes and now we have to manage the 90 minutes well in Madrid. Liverpool are a very competitive team and unfortunately the play-off is not over. Liverpool are a great team because they play at a very high pace and it’s hard to see that in Europe. We’re going to suffer”.

Tactics in relation to the Paris final

“I tried to field a team to play a game that was more open than the final because it’s a double confrontation. We bet on a dangerous attack. Rodrygo did a fantastic job defensively and that helped us a lot . Our strategy was different compared to the final.”

What did he have in mind at 2-0?

“I remembered the semi-final once morest Manchester City. It was predictable to suffer. We said we might suffer, but it was important to keep a cool head and the emotions under control. In this aspect , the veterans help a lot. They all showed calm because the match was long. You keep a cool head when you have confidence in our quality. You have to prepare the team to keep the strategy in place”.

Compliments for Vini Jr.

“At the moment he is the most decisive player in world football. There is no other player with this continuity in action”.

Modric’s game

“He’s the Modrić of all time. The best Modrić you can see in a game: constant, confident and good in handling the ball. In the moment of difficulty, he was key to get out”.

Nacho’s entrance

“In the first half, I told Luka to press Fabinho, but that way we were going to discover each other more on the left side. In the second half, we put Valverde in this place. Nacho is always good. He has footballing intelligence on the left side. defensive level that few players have. In the second half, we settled well”.