CLAIMS HE HASN'T PICKED TEAM FOR ALMERÍA GAME

Ancelotti: "We could play Xabi and Illarra together"

Carlo Ancelotti is keeping his cards close to his chest with regards to the team to face Almería, even mentioning the possibility of pairing Xabi Alonso and Asier Illarramendi in central midfield. "But I won't make a decision until tomorrow", he clarified.

"We've tried to stick to the same system in recent matches, with three central midfielders, including two in the holding role. We could use Casemiro or play Illarra and Alonso together, with Isco further forward. That's a decision I'll have to make, because I have faith in all the players".

Ancelotti's decision has been made easier by the absence of Ángel di María through injury, which the Italian himself revealed. "The squad isn't in the best of fitness, as we've got several players who are unavailable for tomorrow. Counting Di María, Khedira, Marcelo, Varane and Coentrao, that means there are five players out".

The coach, who admitted the club's concerns over Raphael Varane's fitness, acknowledged that Real has struggled after international breaks this season, but was confident there will be no repeat of this scenario on Saturday. "The players have a good mentality. They're all focused on tomorrow's match. They've come back happy because they've all made it through to the World Cup. Psychologically, the players are in good shape. The issue is with physical recovery and above all, injuries".

ANNOUNCES THAT HIS FIRST VOTE HAS BEEN FOR THE PORTUGUESE

Casillas: "I would be surprised if Ronaldo didn't win the Ballon d'Or"

Iker Casillas, in a publicity event, has made his preferences for the Ballon d'Or known: "My first vote has been for Ronaldo. I would be surprised if he didn't win it this year because his goal tally is out of this world".

After making public his preferences, he added that "to know who the others have voted for, you´ll have to wait until January".

"Ronaldo deserves it because he is having an amazing year. I would be surprised if he wasn't given it, although we all have our own criteria. Some of us value titles more, others playing style, but for me, it's about goals. Scoring more than 90 from 80 games is out of this world", he said.

Casillas assured that his priority at the moment is to get back to being a starter for 'Los Blancos': "I'm not thinking about the World Cup, but about doing things well for my club, in training better and being ready for my manager. Playing for the national team is now behind me - we classified for the World Cup a while back and now what I have to do is play well for my club as in this way I'll continue playing for Spain."

"I fight to be the starting goalkeeper. You should never throw in the towel, but train more, work harder and fight for the position", he explained.

Asked about his relationship with Mourinho, Casillas said that "it has been a pleasure to have worked" with the Portuguese. "I prefer to remember the good things, and not think about the same old things all the time. If I see him, I will offer him my hand; you'll have to ask him and see what he has to say", he added.

"I have had nothing to do with any comments in public against Mourinho, at least as far as I can remember", he finished by saying.

THE REAL MADRID MANAGER WANTS HIS MAN TO GET THE PRIZE

Ancelotti: "A lot of courage is needed to not give the Ballon d'Or to Ronaldo"

Carlo Ancelotti has joined in the many voices asking for the Ballon d'Or award to be given to Cristiano Ronaldo: "I love watching him play because he is on excellent form. He plays in an extraordinary way. I hope he wins it because he deserves it".

Carletto added: "A lot of courage is needed to not give the Ballon d'Or to Ronaldo. I saw the game against Sweden and asked myself if it was really true that this player played for Real Madrid".

The Real Madrid manager also wished to give an optimistic message regarding the club's big objective this season – the Champions League: "I am convinced that we are going to play some great football and that we are going to be a very very competitive team in Europe. The obvious objective is to win it, but this is not an obsession, only a great motivation. The world knows that to win the Champions League is not easy because it's not just a question of quality, but also many other things, and also luck. And above all to arrive at the right time and in good shape".

For Ancelotti, "the key to winning a Champions League is in the months of March and April to have the team in great condition, both physically and mentally without problems, and a little bit of luck. If this team plays with the quality that it has, the rest is my problem – it has a great chance of winning".

HE SAYS THAT HE SETS AN EXAMPLE TO FOLLOW

Piqué: "I admire Cristiano Ronaldo, he's a top teammate"

11/21/2013

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Barcelona centre back Gerard Piqué praised Cristiano Ronaldo, his former teammate when the pair played together for Manchester United: "Cristiano is a top teammate. I admire him professionally because he sets an example to follow both as a player and as a person."

Regarding the duel between Ronaldo and Messi, he remarked: "Cristiano's good turn of form will make Messi come back with even greater enthusiasm. The competition between Messi and Cristiano has made both of them better."

As for Barça's style of play, he assured: "We could play better. The debate over our style is a wide-ranging one." He finished on an emphatic note: "The team that won six titles was not the best Barça team; it was the best in the history of football."

CRISTIANO RONALDO IS SHOWERED WITH PRAISE

The world at his feet

11/21/2013

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The World Press has been won over by CR7's performance in Sweden and is tipping him as the favourite for the Ballon d'Or.

BRAZIL

"Unforgettable"

"Cristiano Ronaldo earned a place in the history books in Stockholm. He scored three goals and secured qualification for his national team against Ibrahimovic's Sweden in the best game of his career".

GERMANY

"CR7 wins the battle with Ibra"

"Superb performance from both superstars. A stunning hat-trick from Cristiano Ronaldo takes Portugal through to the World Cup in Brazil"

ARGENTINA

"I'm your nemesis"

"Cristiano Ronaldo smashed it: he put in three goals, taking Portugal through the World Cup where he could even cross paths with Messi in the group stages".

CHINA
"Irrepressible Cristiano, a stunning hat-trick"

"Cristiano Ronaldo wins his personal battle with Ibrahimovic and puts Portugal in the World Cup".

ENGLAND

"The night Cristiano ran away with the Ballon d'Or"

"Game, set and match to Portugal's captain in the race for the Ballon d'Or after his hat-trick secured World Cup qualification".

AUSTRALIA

"Ronaldo, in superstar mode"

"Superb performance from the Portuguese star who, with his three goals, secured Portugal's qualification for the World Cup in Brazil".

UNITED STATES

"The man who should win the Ballon d'Or"

"Cristiano Ronaldo scores a brilliant hat-trick and proves himself to be a top candidate for the trophy".

SOUTH AFRICA

"Cristiano Ronaldo wins out over Ibrahimovic"

"The best of Cristiano Ronaldo delivers victory to Portugal against Ibrahimovic securing a place in the World Cup".

WELSHMAN HAS PLAYED JUST ONE FRIENDLY

Bale the 'antivirus'

Injury to Khedira and Xabi Alonso's scare, mean Ancelotti will breathe a sigh of relief to see Gareth Bale return in one piece to Valdebebas. The Welshman has just played one friendly match and will have the whole week to rest before the game against Almería.

The rest will be welcome news for Bale, who will head into the next league encounter in top shape, unlike his teammates Cristiano Ronaldo and Benzema, who will fight to take their countries to the World Cup, meaning a huge physical and mental effort.

In the last few games, Bale has finally performed to the standards of the Bernabéu faithful - with goals and assists. The pre-season performed by the player before the international break did him the world of good and apart from the below-poor display at the Camp Nou, the winger has produced his best form.

Although he has travelled with and played for Wales during the international break, he has come out of it ok, despite some tough tackles from the Finnish defenders that almost sent him back to Spain on a stretcher. The so-called 'FIFA virus' has been kind to him, to the delight of Ancelotti, who complained about the dates of the international games on Monday.

Ancelotti has found an ally in Wales coach Chris Coleman, who understands Real Madrid's concerns and is prepared to collaborate with the club and rest Bale in unnecessary games.

"He'll probably say he wants to play in every game, but that's a dialogue we have to have with Madrid due to the club's investment", Coleman said.

INTERVIEW WITH REAL MADRID COACH

"Football is about defending well"

11/19/2013

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Carlo Ancelotti is a simple, down-to-earth man. And if you get him in his comfort zone, talking about football, he doesn't hold back. The coach sat down with MARCA and EL MUNDO to discuss 'My Christmas Tree', his book about his career in the dugout. It's kick-off time...

In your book you go into detail about all your tactical ideas, but what came first, the system or the players?
The players come first and foremost. I spent a long time working with Sacchi and back then there was only one formation for me, 4-4-2, which was easy to explain. But things changed at Juve. I didn't like having to take Zidane out of his natural position by shunting him to the left or right, so I started looking at the players' attributes and designing a system that suited them. Before that, at Parma, I had the chance to sign Baggio. When I spoke to him, he said he wanted to play as an attacking midfielder and I told him I couldn't play him there because it didn't fit into our system. When I look back I think 'no way, how on earth did I turn down Baggio, a 20-25 goal-a-season player?' What I'm getting at is that you change as you gain experience.

Has it all been done in football?

I don't think so. You only have to look at Spain, which won the World Cup without an out-and-out centre-forward. Dynamism is the be-all and end-all.

But we haven't seen your Christmas tree at Real Madrid yet.

We tried the Christmas tree at the beginning, but we changed to the diamond formation and then 4-4-2. I can't use the Christmas tree here because of the players' attributes. You've got Cristiano, who likes playing on the left, and Bale on the right. You don't have the right players for that system. Then you've got Isco, for instance, who would fit right in as a central attacking midfielder.

But is it easier to apply in Spain?

It's not about the country. It's the novelty factor that gives you an edge. With Sacchi's system, the opponents didn't know what had hit them. The same thing happened at Milan with the Christmas tree to begin with, because people didn't know how to defend against the attacking midfielders, but coaches are smart and they eventually come up with a solution.

An Italian possession-based coach is a rare thing.

The Italian league is a big help, because you come up against all sorts of systems. Football is also about defending well and I'm not happy with how Real Madrid is defending. Being Italian doesn't mean I only like defending - at Chelsea we scored the highest number of goals in the club's history.

So what's the source of all these problems at the back?

Above all it's an issue of sacrifice, as well as good organisation. In my opinion 4-4-2 is the best defensive formation, because it's not easy to defend with only three midfielders. Plus I don't like giving Cristiano Ronaldo and especially Bale too much defensive responsibility, because we need their ability going forward. It's not easy to protect the defence and press up top with three midfielders. We had the same problem with the Christmas tree because it was difficult to cover for the full-backs when they pushed forward.