- Real Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti responded to Bernardo Silva’s ‘strange’ statement
- Ancelotti’s men will face Bayern Munich in the Champions League semi-finals
- Come on, Pep! Chris Wood missed opportunity after opportunity due to the dryness of the field – Listen to the It’s all starting! podcast
Real Madrid manager Carlo Ancelotti has hit back at Manchester City star Bernardo Silva after claiming the La Liga side were a “strange team” having knocked them out of the Champions League this month.
Reigning champions City were beaten 4-3 on penalties by Madrid after a 1-1 draw at the Etihad (4-4 on aggregate), despite the home team dominating much of the game. of the second leg.
City had beaten Madrid in the semi-finals of last year’s competition, but lost to them at the same stage of the 2021-22 edition, leading Silva to claim that Madrid were a “strange” team against which play because of their ability to create opportunities even if they are apparently not having a good time in the game.
“Real Madrid is a strange team,” he said in statements to TNT Sports. “Sometimes it seems like you have control of the game and out of nowhere, they run twice (on the counter) and score two goals because their players individually are very good.
“They are so fast and strong on the counterattack that it is not easy to control them.
Real Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti responded to Bernardo Silva after stating that his team was “strange”
Silva was left deflated after Madrid knocked City out of the Champions League quarter-finals despite dominating the match.
‘If you attack with too many players, they run towards the counterattack. If you don’t attack with many players, it seems that you are not effective enough to attack them properly. “That’s why it’s hard to make these little decisions in the game.”
But Ancelotti, whose team will play Harry Kane’s Bayern Munich in the semi-finals on Tuesday night, refuted Silva’s claims and stressed that his team have simply shown they understand the “history” of the competition.
“We are not strangers,” he said before the clash against Bayern. ‘We are a team that can show the history of the past in this competition.
‘I have nothing to say to Bernardo Silva. He is a great player, a giant, last year they reached the final and now it is our turn.”
Madrid prepares to face Bayern Munich in the Champions League semi-finals on Tuesday
Silva played the full 90 minutes against Madrid in the first leg at the Bernabéu, which ended 3-3, before playing another 90 in the second leg.
The Portugal international has been one of City’s best players under Pep Guardiola this season with 11 goals and five assists as they bid to win a fourth consecutive Premier League title as well as the FA Cup.
Madrid are 11 points ahead of their closest rival Barcelona in LaLiga, and Ancelotti’s team knows they can win the title this weekend if they beat Cádiz and Barça drop points against Valencia or Girona.
They face a Bayern injured after losing the Bundesliga title to Bayer Leverkusen, and their star Harry Kane is aiming to win the first trophy of his career.
