Carlo Ancelotti: Real Madrid slowly getting ‘back to our best’

Real Madrid head coach Carlos Ancelotti believes the team is slowly but surely getting back to their best by showing little improvement. Los Blancos registered a convincing 4-1 win against Espanyol in La Liga on Saturday.

After a goalless first half at the Santiago Bernabeu, the hosts conceded the lead after Thibaut Courtois scored an own goal nine minutes into the second half.

However, goals from Dani Carvajal, Rodrygo, Vinícius, and Kylian Mbappé helped Ancelotti’s team to bag all three points.

“I thought it was a good game, we reacted well after Espanyol’s goal,” Ancelotti said in his post-match news conference. “We played better, with more rhythm, we had more chances.

“We played faster, moving the ball with more speed, with better movement … our mobility is a very important weapon. The third goal was spectacular, a fantastic counter attack. Little by little we’re getting back to our best version.”

Meanwhile, Madrid has failed to find their A-game in the first half but they have been successful in turning the tables in the second half. Interestingly, 17 of their 18 goals in all competitions have come after half-time. Madrid has been unbeaten in the last 38 games in the La Liga.

“We talked about it with the players before the game, to see if we could change that dynamic, and we couldn’t,” Ancelotti said. “Thirty-eight games without losing shows the team has done very well.”

The Italian manager also showered praise on Endrick, who earned a penalty at the fag end after coming off the bench.

“[Endrick] is training very well, but up front we have Rodrygo, Mbappé and Vinícius,” Ancelotti said. “We have to be patient.”

Real Madrid will next take on Alaves at the Santiago Bernabeu on Tuesday.