Carlo Ancelotti admits Real Madrid ‘suffered in the first half’ against Celtic before scoring three in the second to win in first game of Champions League defence… but manager plays down fears of serious injury to Karim Benzema
- Real Madrid manager Carlo Ancelotti admitted his side struggled against Celtic
- Vinicius Jr, Luka Modric and Eden Hazard all netted in Real’s 3-0 win on Tuesday
- Celtic held the European champions for almost an hour before the breakthrough
- The Bhoys have failed to score in seven of their last ten home European fixtures
Real Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti admits Real Madrid were forced to suffer before showing their class against Celtic.
Goals from Vinicius Junior, Luka Modric and Eden Hazard in the final half hour earned a comfortable 3-0 win for the European champions.
Troubled by a first half when the Scottish champions struck the upright and made chances, Ancelotti expressed relief at earning his first win as a coach in Glasgow’s east end.
Real Madrid boss Carlo Ancelotti admitted his side ‘suffered in the first half’ against Celtic
Celtic struggled in the second half where they conceded three goals as keeper Joe Hart throws the ball after conceding
‘Celtic is a good team. We were worried about the game because we knew what they did against Rangers. We suffered in the first half but it was normal to suffer here. The atmosphere at the stadium is fantastic. We are happy to show good football to these supporters.’
Showing signs of touchline anxiety in the first half the veteran Italian claimed: ‘I wasn’t angry. I can’t get angry with this team. It is true that we struggled but in the end we got there.’
‘Second half we did play well. Every team can struggle including us but in the end we kept our heads and managed to stay in the game.’
Vinicius Junior broke the deadlock for the Spanish side at the start of the second half with a low finish
Luka Modric doubled Madrid’s lead with a superb shot with the outside of his boot
Real suffered an injury scare when Ballon d’Or hopeful Karim Benzema limped from the field after half an hour. Easing fears of a serious problem Ancelotti called on Eden Hazard as the Frenchman’s replacement, with the former Chelsea attacker claiming the third goal 13 minutes from time.
Eden Hazard – who replaced Benzema – scored in the 77th minute
‘For the moment (Benzema) is nothing worrying. From the first evaluations it’s not too serious. We will wait to see what the medical examinations say in the morning. We don’t know yet if it’s muscular or not.
‘There were lots of winners in today’s game particularly Eden Hazard who has come through with goals and assists. He is very motivated to play. It wasn’t easy for him to come on because we were struggling in the first half but we coped better in the second half.’
Defender Eder Militao also limped off as Real extended Celtic’s record of Champions League home games without a goal to seven in 10.
Ancelotti said: ‘Militao wanted to carry on but we didn’t want to risk him. Overall our game in the second half was good, we controlled possession and when it was needed we were fast on the break so overall it was good.’
Karim Benzema handed Ancelotti a scare when he limped off the field after just half an hour
