Ancelotti: "We’ve played well and there’s a good feeling"

Carlo Ancelotti spoke in the press room at Real Madrid City ahead of the game against Mallorca at Son Moix, on matchday 20 of LaLiga (2pm CET): “They’re a team that defend really well and can hit you on the counter. They’re solid at the back. Using the ball well and the movement up front will be decisive in the game”.

 “Alaba is ok. He’s trained and is available. Militão and Benzema are having tests and it’s nothing serious. I don’t think they’ll be available for tomorrow, but they’ll travel with us for the Club World Cup. I don’t know if they’ll be available for the first or second game. They’re both mild injuries”.

On the team’s form
“We’ve played well in the last games. We performed well against Real Sociedad but couldn’t get the win. After the defeat in the Super Cup, we’ve done well in the Copa del Rey against strong teams and we did really well away in Bilbao in the league. There’s a good feeling and the team’s doing better. We had some unforeseen injuries, but the team’s doing much better. We can handle the injuries because there are players who can come in and replace those who are injured and do a good job”.

Vini Jr.
“Vinicius will prepare for the game the same way he always does and will look to use his quality on the pitch. We’ll see what happens after. I don’t think I need to speak to him because he’s very focussed on what he has to do. He’s a great footballer. My grandchildren love him, and the youngsters do too because he’s amazing on the ball and he’s got great quality. I’ve got four grandchildren and they’ve all got the shirt with Vinicious’ name on the back and they won’t have any other”.
 
Modrić and Kroos
“They can rest, but it's not for them to rest with another game in mind. The most important match is the one against Mallorca and winning it means everything to us. We will field the best team tomorrow and that could be with them or without them. I'm not resting Modrić and Kroos because of the Club World Cup semi-final. Tomorrow's game is equally important for the World Cup because winning it will give us more confidence”.

“Ceballos is doing very well. He's a player with great quality. He's reliable on the pitch, he plays with personality and he's confident on and off the ball. He's doing really well at the moment and I hope he can keep it up”.
 
Benzema
“The idea is for club legends like Benzema to stay here until they retire”.
 
Valverde
“He’s doing much better. He doesn't have to score in every game because he's an inside player. He’s excelled because he scored a lot of goals in the first part of the season, but we ask him to bring his energy to the team and he’s slowly getting there”.
 
Managing the fixture schedule
“We're looking at the fatigue situation. It's more about recovery than fitness work. There's no time for training and the matches help us to build up our fitness. The work of the doctors and physiotherapists is far more important than the work of the coach”.
 
Club World Cup
“We haven't even started to focus on the preparation for the Club World Cup yet. We know the teams we will face in the quarter-finals and we'll focus on them after the game against Mallorca”.
 
Lack of rest
“I don't think it's right to play with under 72 hours rest, but we have to do it. Playing on Sunday at two o'clock in the afternoon doesn't feel right”.
 
Contract renewal
“I don't know and I don't look at the renewals. I only focus on their professionalism, their desire, their motivation and what they contribute. My players are serious and professional on a daily basis. When they play, they contribute on the pitch. The issue of the renewals will be discussed with the club”.
 
Offers
"It's not true that there have been offers of players".