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Ancelotti Expects Bellingham to Bounce Back from Bayern Game
The Italian coach said that the best version of the English international was not seen against Bayern Munich, but he is confident that he will recover it.
The Italian Carlo Ancelotti, coach of Real Madrid, expressed his confidence that English international Jude Bellingham, who was substituted after experiencing cramps and a lackluster performance against Bayern Munich in the first leg of the Champions League semi-final, "will regain his best form" in the return leg at the Santiago Bernabéu.
"We are going to get the best version of Bellingham back. He had an injury that affected him a lot. Today we didn't see his best form, but on Wednesday he will be at one hundred percent," Ancelotti assured in a press conference at the Allianz Arena.
The Italian coach praised the evolution of Brazilian Vinícius Junior in finishing, after his double gave Real Madrid a 2-2 draw.
"He can play as a forward now; he has learned to move well without the ball and to attack the back line. He did very well. He needs to have a midfielder like Kroos to play such balls to him, but he is very calm in front of goal," he acknowledged.
Ancelotti deemed the draw satisfactory, recognizing that his team did not put in a strong performance in Munich. "It was a big effort, especially at the end, to draw the match. Bayern showed their best form, while we only did so partially."
"We played very well at times, but coincidentally, in our best moment of the match, they scored two goals. It's a good result that gives us confidence for the return leg. The tie is completely open because Bayern has players with great qualities," he explained.
"I see the tie the same as yesterday; there are no surprises in what Bayern did because they have many players with quality who can cause damage. It's a shame that in our best moment, when we were controlling the ball well and Kroos could have scored a second goal, they scored twice, but we managed to recover with contributions from those who came into the match," he added.
Ancelotti lamented that his team defended "too softly" and "without the intensity of City," expressing confidence that they would improve this at the Santiago Bernabéu, where they would have the support of the fans. "We have reached this point of the season with a great opportunity to play another final, knowing it will be very challenging because we are playing against a great team. The tie is evenly balanced, but the fans will help us."
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