Real Madrid News
Ancelotti confirms Real Madrid superstar picked up a knock vs Almeria: “Hit to his knee”
Speaking after Real Madrid’s 4-2 win over UD Almeria at the Santiago Bernabeu, manager Carlo Ancelotti confirmed that superstar winger Vinicius Jr picked up a knock during the game.
Vinicius enjoyed another fine game as he got an assist and won a penalty as Los Blancos cruised to an impressive win riding on Karim Benzema’s hat-trick and a Rodrygo strike.
However, there were a couple of concerns to emerge for the Merengues from the contest as, for starters, both Vinicius and Eduardo Camavinga will be suspended for the next La Liga game against Real Sociedad due to accumulation of cards.
On top of that, Ancelotti has now confirmed that Vinicius picked up a knock during the game, which led to him being asked to be taken off late in the game.
“Vinicius suffered a hit to his knee, but it is nothing serious. He will be ready for the Copa Del Rey final,” Ancelotti said (h/t MARCA).
It is good news for Real Madrid that the knock is not serious as they are already without Luka Modric for the Copa del Rey final against CA Osasuna on May 6.
But the Italian expects the 22-year-old to be available, especially considering that he will have enough time to recover as he will not be playing against Sociedad.
Talking about Vinicius’ yellow card for protesting a foul on him, the manager said: “The reality is that Vinicius protests, he is always fouled and protests. The reality is that he has 10 yellow cards and his opponents have had far fewer.”
On his anger after his team conceded, Ancelotti said: “It was relaxation, when it looked like the game was over we relaxed with the 3-0 and the 4-1, this is a wake-up call for us, you can’t lower the level because if you lower it you concede goals”.
The manager also spoke about the performance of midfielder Aurelien Tchouameni, saying: “I think Tchouaméni is an important player because he gives us cover in front of our centre-backs.
“He’s good in the penalty area when the opponents come in and with the ball he has to improve, he’s very young and he’s learning, I’ve told him not to move so much because he has a lot of energy and sometimes he gets out of position, especially with the ball.”
Real Madrid News
Rayo Vallecano manager names the one Real Madrid figure he would remove from the team
Rayo Vallecano face a daunting trip to the Santiago Bernabeu to take on a wounded Real Madrid this weekend.
Life after Inigo Perez has not been kind to the Vallecas-based club, who have already had to travel to Camp Nou and now face a trip to the home of their city giants.
Speaking ahead of the game (h/t Madrid Xtra), Rayo Vallecano manager Benat San Jose was asked which Real Madrid player he would like to remove from the team before this weekend’s game.
Surprisingly, his choice was not Kylian Mbappe, Vinicius Junior or Thibaut Courtois.
“Mourinho”
Asked which Madrid player he would take out of the upcoming contest, Benat jokingly chose the man sitting on the opposition bench.
“Which Real Madrid player I’d remove from the match against them? Mourinho,” Benat said with a laugh.
The answer might have been delivered jokingly, but the Rayo coach immediately made clear just how highly he rates the Portuguese manager.
“He’s one of the best managers in history,” he added.
It is significant praise ahead of Saturday’s meeting at the Bernabeu.
Madrid’s squad contains enough individual quality to give any opposition coach several obvious answers, but Benat instead highlighted the influence Mourinho can have over the entire team.
That has become particularly relevant since the Portuguese coach returned to Madrid. His early work has focused on making a talented group function with greater collective discipline.
Courtois and Madrid’s attack also praised
Benat did not stop with the manager.
“They also have one of the best GKs in history and one of the best attackers in history,” he said.
Benat will definitely have seen how Thibaut Courtois played against Inter Milan in midweek and will hope that version does not turn up again this weekend.
Even when teams manage to create opportunities against Madrid, they still have to beat one of the defining goalkeepers of his generation.
At the opposite end, Madrid possess attacking quality capable of turning a match on its head.
The likes of Kylian Mbappe, Vinicius Junior and Jude Bellingham can all decide matches single-handedly.
Madrid have a point to prove
Madrid are coming off a disappointing loss to Real Betis in La Liga last weekend and will come into this game with a point to prove.
They will want to ensure that the loss to the Andalusian club was a one-off and that they return to winning ways against Rayo.
Their title rivals, Barça, have been flying high in the league, scoring goals and picking opponents apart for fun.
Madrid need to ensure that they do not hand too much early incentive to Barça, and it remains to be seen how Los Blancos fare against Rayo Vallecano.
