Ancelotti: Madrid paid price for lack of patience against Juventus

The former Bianconeri boss admitted his side had underperformed in the first leg in Turin but remains confident they can get through to the final


Carlo Ancelotti blamed a lack of patience and quality for Real Madrid’s Champions League semi-final defeat at Juventus on Tuesday.

The visitors were sloppy throughout and eventually succumbed to a 2-1 first-leg loss thanks to an Alvaro Morata tap-in and a Carlos Tevez penalty either side of a Cristiano Ronaldo header.

Ancelotti, going up against his former club, was disappointed with the outcome but remains confident his side will progress to next month’s final in Berlin by winning next week’s second leg at the Santiago Bernabeu.

The Madrid coach told TVE: “The game could have gone better for us. We tried but not always with the right quality or efficiency.

“We tried to have control of the game. We had bad luck as well because we could have scored to make it 2-1 but instead we conceded. It does not leave us happy but we still have the confidence that we can come back.

“We lost patience. The game did not start well, we left space between the lines which cost us a goal. Then we played well. We tried to continue [in that vein] but we could not.”

Ancelotti again played central defender Sergio Ramos in midfield – a tactic that worked so well in the second leg of the quarter-final against Atletico Madrid – but the Spain international struggled to make any kind of positive impact.

“It was not just a bad game for Ramos,” the Italian trainer said. “We lost precision passing out of defence too. The match seemed straightforward when we were playing well. But Juve are dangerous on the counterattack.”

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