Real have recovered from ´hangover´, claims Ancelotti

Carlo Ancelotti claims Real Madrid have recovered from the “emotional mental hangover” that saw them drop points against Valencia.

Having seen off Bayern Munich 5-0 on aggregate to reach the UEFA Champions League final last week, Real needed a late Cristiano Ronaldo goal to snatch a 2-2 La Liga draw against Juan Antonio Pizzi’s men on Sunday.

The Portugal captain produced a stunning acrobatic effort in injury time to secure a point after leaders Atletico Madrid lost at Levante on the same day.

Ancelotti felt his side lacked the intensity required against Valencia at the Bernabeu, but has now turned his attention to Wednesday’s crunch clash at Real Valladolid.

A victory would leave Ancelotti’s men just two points behind Atleti with two games remaining in an enthralling title race and the Italian is confident his side can see off their relegation-threatened opponents.

“My team are doing well, we have plenty of experienced players to try and achieve silverware and very strong characters in the squad – anything is possible,” he said.

“We have to take into account we had a semi-final, we had an emotional mental hangover following such a demanding game.

“We’ve recovered in the last few days.

“We lost an opportunity (against Valencia) but we have to continue to believe can win because it’s not mathematically done. Mentally, the team reacted really well.

“We’re focused but it’s going to be a different game to the one we played against Valencia. The tension will be different. It’s a key contest.

“It will be a very important game for both teams. We are fighting for the league while they are fighting to stay in it.”

Ancelotti knows there is no such thing as an easy game in La Liga and does not expect sides with nothing to play for to roll over.

“I’m sure the teams are going to try win all their remaining games this campaign,” he added.

“Levante, who weren’t really playing for much, put in a really good performance against Atletico.

“Valencia didn’t need the points but put in a good performance against us too.”