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Real Madrid vs. Barcelona, 2014 Copa del Rey Final: Ancelotti Confirms Cristiano Ronaldo Will Miss El Clasico

Ancelotti did not announce who was going to start between Isco and Illarramendi, though he did say that the decision is made

Denis Doyle

It's official. Cristiano Ronaldo will miss the 2014 Copa del Rey Final against FC Barcelona. Carlo Ancelotti himself confirmed it in the pre-match press conference.

I knew that Cristiano was not going to play this very same morning. We have a lot of players and confidence to do well. Without Ronaldo we lose a very important player, but we are now more motivated. He will train by himself tomorrow morning and then travel to Valencia to watch the game. The gameplan is the same with or without Cristiano. He did not rest before because he didn't need to.

The Italian coach also explained his approach to Wednesday's Final.

We are not planning the match to block Barcelona but to play it with our own style and personality. Barcelona are still attacking well and we need to have most of the possession tomorrow. To work as a whole is our main goal. That's what we train for. We are not planning any man-marking on Leo Messi.

Casillas spoke with the media too.

I'm not worried about Messi's form. That's for Barcelona to deal with, I need to focus and worry about my team.

I think the team is ready. Maybe we didn't have very good results against those elite teams, but the team is ready and solid.

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