Minute´s silence at the Santiago Bernabéu
It was held before the Real Madrid-Almería match in memory of Franz Beckenbauer.
The Santiago Bernabéu stadium held a minute’s silence before the start of the Real Madrid-Almería clash, on matchday 21 of LaLiga, in memory of Franz Beckenbauer, one of the greatest legends of European and world football. The Real Madrid footballers wore black armbands during the match.

Ancelotti: “The three decisions made by VAR were correct”

“We turned it around in the second half thanks to the support you get from this stadium, which is always the case,” explained the coach.
Carlo Ancelotti spoke in the press room at the Santiago Bernabéu stadium and gave his thoughts on the victory over Almería in matchday 21 of La Liga: “It was a strange game. We had a bad first half, lacking energy. The assessment I made after yesterday’s training session was wrong. The team was tired and we performed very badly. Then the team’s character and the support of the fans helped us to come back from a very difficult game and put in a completely different second half”.

“I can’t take anything positive from the first half of the game. It’s better to leave it behind. The team was out of sorts and lacked energy. We got off to a very bad start and it’s better to forget the first half. In the second half we won thanks to the boost this stadium gives us, which it always does”.

The half-time team talk
“I could only change the team’s momentum and energy with fresh players. Some players were paying for the extra time in the cup and I made a mistake with the line-up. The ones who came on in the second half gave a big boost”.

“I was annoyed with myself. Every player wants to play and we have to evaluate the players’ level of fatigue and we didn’t assess it well. I started to think about making changes in the 30th minute because there was a lack of energy. I told the players the strategy to follow and nothing else. The first person I had to be angry with was myself”.

The changes
“We changed the system using Joselu and Brahim. We tried to play more out wide and to get Bellingham closer to the penalty area. Vini Jr. moved inside and Fran García on the outside to put in crosses. Camavinga and Ceballos provided more energy. Those who have come on have shown they could play from the start.”

The refereeing
“I understand Almeria’s complaints. They were decisions reviewed by VAR, but there were three quite straightforward decisions. I think the right decisions were made. Everyone has their own opinion. I say what I’ve seen. Almeria played very well, but if you look at the three decisions, they were correct. I’m ready to hear that we won because of VAR”.

The whistles in the first half
“I understand them because it was an unacceptable first half. They were reasonable and correct”.

The goalkeeping
“Kepa and Lunin are happy and at ease. I talk to them all the time. It happened with Casillas and Diego López and it wasn’t bad that year. I hope it works out the same way”.

Defensive work
“We have to get back to being more solid and resolute at the back because you don’t always have the strenght to come from behind”.