Palma: Carlo Ancelotti was “not happy” after Mallorca played spoilsport for the much awaited debut of Kylian Mbappe as Real Madrid were held to a 1-1 draw in their opening game at the Mallorca Son Moix Stadium.
On a night where the front three of Vinicius, Mbappe and Rodrygo failed to connect with the same intensity that the side displayed during their Super Cup win over Atalanta, the team struggled in a lot of aspects on the pitch.
Following the final whistle, Carlo Ancelotti said he was ‘not happy’ with the result.
“Last year I was happy with some draws, but not today. We could have done much better. I don’t want to make excuses. We just had to do better, with more attitude. You can learn from these games. It’s clear where the problem is,” said Ancelotti to reporters in the post game interview.
Kylian Mbappe’s addition to Real Madrid poses a unique challenge for the Italian manager. The Los Blancos star is now filled with superstars, aging veterans and some of the brightest young talents in the world.
The team is one of the best in Europe on paper but that increases the task of the head coach as he needs to find the perfect balance in the squad and make sure the team is focused on all aspects of the game, a topic he brushed upon.
“When we win the ball back, we all have to think about it together. You can think that it is a problem for the forwards, but it could be a problem for the defence, or for the midfielders. It is not a problem for one, two or three. It is a problem for a team that in this match did not understand that it was a key aspect. Mallorca played a great game defensively. The draw is correct,” added the Italian manager.
–IANS