Real Madrid’s Carlo Ancelotti on academy involvement, Dani Ceballos and ‘most complete player in football’ | OneFootball

Real Madrid manager Carlo Ancelotti has confirmed that he is open to the idea of starting with four midfielders in his side, following a string of good performances from Dani Ceballos in the middle of the pitch. Of course the flipside of that is that it would mean dropping one of his four star-studded forwards.

In their latest win over Salzburg, Ancelotti tested Fede Valverde at right-back, an experiment that went reasonably well. Ancelotti was asked about his position, the Italian gave high praise for Uruguayan.

“Obviously he is a complete player, very, very important. He can cover many positions and he does them all perfectly: pivot, inside midfielder… it is very difficult to find a right-back like him. It is difficult to choose his best position, so I try to choose which is his best position in the team. If there is a need for more at right-back, he will play there. If it is in midfield, there.”

“He never demands anything and this is also a virtue. He is probably the most complete player in the world at the moment. He could be a centre back, without any problem.”

Another player who has been impressing of late is Ceballos, and Ancelotti confirmed he was willing to trust him in the biggest games to come. The media also compared him to Toni Kroos.

“Ceballos has contributed a lot in this period. He has returned to his best form after several muscular problems and is now in very good shape. He looks more secure with the ball. He can play in the important matches, of course.”

Ancelotti has spent no shortage of time in the last few weeks emphasizing defensive commitment as the key factor to a successful season, something he believes his players are beginning to get to grips with.

Photo by Pablo Garcia / Ap-LaPresse

“Yes. It is something we have talked about a lot in these periods and we will continue to do so. We are focusing on improving at the back, the team understands this and is doing so, without a doubt. They are aware that this is the key to success.”

Despite Raul Asencio now featuring regularly in the backline, and the likes of Lorenzo Aguado and Diego Aguado playing in the Copa del Rey, Ancelotti asserted that he had not changed his approach to academy players.

“No, I’m still the same. The idea is always the same: to win. If it’s with youth players, fine, because they deserve to play. They are taking advantage of the opportunities that injuries have opened up, for now. Asencio, Jacobo, Loren… they are people who are taking advantage of the absences we’ve had.”