The penalty with which Girona equalized on Sunday at the Bernabeu was the focus of Carlo Ancelotti's press conference ahead of tomorrow's Champions League match against Celtic on Wednesday, in which Real Madrid plays for first place in the group, a match between which was barely discussed at the hearing. The possibility of being sanctioned (Competition will open a file today for his words) does not worry the Italian coach, who insisted that the play was not a penalty and that saying that is not offending the referee or going in bad faith.
Ancelotti wanted to clarify what he said on Sunday at the end of the match against Girona: "Penalty invented in Italy means that they have awarded a penalty that was not a penalty. Bad faith and accusing a referee do not enter. I have never disrespected a referee. It doesn't change me much that they sanction me in four games. I've directed 1,200 and that I can't in four isn't going to ruin my statistics. For me, it wasn't a penalty because of what they explained to us at the beginning of the season. Nobody is infallible ", he pointed.
And he continued: "This is not an issue that a club like Madrid complains about or not. It is a football issue that football has to clarify. I understand the rule very well, I am not stupid. And they have explained to us that this It wasn't a penalty," he said vehemently.
Regarding his possible sanction, Ancelotti commented: "I don't know if they're going to sanction me. I keep sleeping at night. I've only said one thing that everyone understands. I think the referee has to have more of a role. VAR He did to clarify very clear errors and sometimes the VAR has more prominence than the referee. I understand that it is a very fine line, but it did not seem to me that awarding the penalty was a clear error, "he said
Ancelotti commented on why he wants his team to beat Celtic tomorrow: "Not because it is important to be first, because there are important teams that will go through as second, but because of the prestige of this team. You have to show the image that this team has always had in the history".
Ancelotti announced that Tchouméni is still out due to an overload and that Benzema is doubtful. If the Frenchman doesn't play he will have already missed eight games this season. Regarding Celtic, the Italian coach commented: "Celtic are not going to change their identity. They are going to play their game with passion. It will be a very open game. I respect this team a lot."
Before Ancelotti went through the press room Toni Kroos, who ends his contract on June 30 and still does not reveal his future: "I'm very good. I feel good physically. I'm very calm about my renewal. I don't even know what's going to happen." happen. I'm going to retire here, what I don't know is when. There's nothing new. I'll talk to the club in January or February".
The German midfielder, who was sent off against Girona (the first red card of his career), was also upset by the penalty: "There are talks with the referees, but in the end they whistle what they see at the time. It's a penalty but I don't like to talk about the referees. It hasn't been an action to be reviewed by the VAR," Kroos said.
