Real Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti on Tuesday said that he is confident his team can shine against Manchester City next week to progress in the UEFA Champions League after a thrilling 3-3 quarter-final first leg.
Last season, record 14-time winners Madrid tied 1-1 with Pep Guardiola’s City at home in the semi-final first leg, but were hammered 4-0 at the Etihad Stadium.
City, who went on to win the competition for the first time, twice took the lead against Madrid, but Los Blancos battled back to leave the game finely poised.
Photo: AFP
“We had the grit to get back into the game, now we have a small disadvantage because we play away from home, but with the confidence that we can repeat this performance,” Ancelotti told reporters.
Ancelotti said his players lacked courage and personality last season in Manchester, but the coach insisted this year would be different.
“Today we gave our best selves — we have the confidence of repeating the same in the second leg,” said the coach, who managed a record 200th game in the competition in the draw at the Santiago Bernabeu. “The truth is the idea was to take a small lead, maybe a 4-3, it wouldn’t change a lot of what I’d plan for the second leg. We started in a very bad way with a goal against us, but the team managed the situation very well.”
Photo: Reuters
Bernardo Silva sent City ahead with a free-kick, but a Ruben Dias own-goal and Rodrygo’s strike put Madrid ahead.
Phil Foden and Josko Gvardiol scored two screamers for City, but Fede Valverde rescued Madrid a draw with a searing volley.
Guardiola said his team showed maturity to “control the game” in the second half, after seeing Madrid evaporate their initial lead.
“In the first one, two, three seasons together we would have lost [the game] 4-1, 5-1, we were not stable emotionally,” the former Barcelona coach said. “Being stable emotionally is fundamental ... in the good moments and the bad moments.”
Guardiola said having home advantage in the second leg could give his team the equivalent of a one-goal boost.
“In Manchester it will be sold out, our fans will help us score one goal and we will try to do the rest,” Guardiola said. “It’s simple — the team who wins will be in the semi-final.”
In London, Harry Kane said Bayern Munich had to show a reaction after the collapse of their Bundesliga title defense as they held Arsenal 2-2 in the first leg their quarter-final.
The Gunners made the perfect start when Bukayo Saka’s low finish put them ahead after only 12 minutes, before former Arsenal forward Serge Gnabry swept home an equalizer six minutes later.
Kane, Tottenham Hotspur’s all-time top goalscorer, scored from the penalty spot on his return to north London to give Bayern a 2-1 lead at halftime, but Leandro Trossard leveled for the Gunners 14 minutes from time to leave the tie finely balanced heading back to Germany next week.
Bayern have lost their past two Bundesliga games to leave Bayer 04 Leverkusen on the brink of their first ever title.
The Bavarian giants have won the German title for the past 11 seasons and Kane admitted their league form has put more pressure on them to succeed in Europe.
“You saw a really determined team tonight. It was probably the perfect game to have because we needed a reaction from the last few games in the Bundesliga,” Kane told TNT Sports. “We had to become more of a team if you want to be successful in this competition.”
Bayern’s poor form has already assured that coach Thomas Tuchel would leave the club at the end of the season, but Kane said that Tuchel — who won the UEFA Champions League as Chelsea boss in 2020-2021 — is determined to leave on a high.
“We all have huge respect for the boss and we all want to end his time here on a high,” Kane said. “He’s not giving up at all, he wants to achieve something special with this team.”
Mikel Arteta acknowledged that his side failed to match their usual standards and let Bayern back into the game.
“A lot of things today we haven’t done it to the standards we normally do,” the Spaniard said. “We allowed them spaces to run and they are very dangerous. Even 2-1 [down] the team tried to find the rhythm, didn’t rush things and the changes made a big difference.”
In contrast to Bayern’s vast experience at this stage of the competition, Arsenal are in the last eight for the first time in 14 years, but Arteta retains belief his side can shock the hosts at the Allianz Arena next week.
“Look at the players they have, the experience they have, you get punished, but that’s part of football,” he said. “I have a lot of belief we can go there and beat them. We have to prepare really well.”
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