Carlo Ancelotti said Real Madrid will have no time to prepare for their Champions League knockout phase playoffs, blaming the club’s hectic fixture list this month.
Madrid’s disappointing league phase campaign saw them beaten by Lille, AC Milan and Liverpool — before recovering to win their last three games — meaning they failed to finish in the top eight and therefore qualify directly for the round of 16.
Instead, they face two playoff games this month, adding to an already busy calendar.
“There’s no preparation when you play every three days,” Ancelotti said in a news conference on Friday, ahead of Madrid’s match at Espanyol in LaLiga. “There’s no preparation. There’s recovery, videos, game, recovery, videos, game, for 40 days … We’ll need to rotate to have the players ready. We’ll need the entire squad at this stage of the season.”
After the Espanyol game, Madrid face Leganés in the Copa del Rey quarterfinals, before a derby with Atletico Madrid in LaLiga.
They will then play the first leg of their Champions League playoff, before visiting Osasuna in the league, the Champions League second leg, and then another LaLiga game at Girona, followed by a possible Copa del Rey semifinal.
“It’s hard to talk about the future of players, because they’re personal decisions,” Ancelotti said, when asked about Rodrygo. “What I see is that the players here are happy to be here and want to stay here, they want to win trophies. After that, what each thinks, I don’t know … There are a lot of players who want to be in Rodrygo’s or Vinícius‘ place, and wear this shirt.”
Ancelotti wouldn’t confirm that Madrid will not add to their squad before the Spanish transfer window closes on Monday, and welcomed the return to the team of Vinícius after his two-game ban in LaLiga.
“He’s aware of what he has to do on the pitch,” Ancelotti said, when asked if Vinícius should try harder to avoid being booked. “He’s a mature person, and we’re delighted he can come back. He’s trained well, he’s fresh and can bring a lot to the team tomorrow.”
