Ancelotti: “Benzema is the world’s best attacker”

Real Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti talked to Diario AS in an interview which was published this Friday. The Italian coach reviewed the first half of the 2021-2022 season and talked in depth about some of his players.

“The team was already built last season and they competed until the very end. Titles didn’t come their way but they competed and were close to win in a year when the pandemic made if tough for everyone,” said Ancelotti.

The coach refused to promise titles but said that the team will compete until the end of the season.

“It’s not a great idea to promise trophies but we can promise what Real Madrid always do, compete until the very end. We’re doing that in every competition, every single game. We’ve failed in just a few games during the first half of the season, and we only had two losses against Espanyol and Sheriff. We missed players like Modric or Kroos in that stage but as soon as they were back this team recovered its identity,” he added.

Ancelotti was asked about whether or not he thinks the Casemiro, Modric and Kroos midfield is the best in the world.

“I think so. The three of them are the best midfield line in current football. Maybe you see box-to-box midfielders more often now, but Modric, Kroos and Casemiro have so much experience and quality that they are extraordinary. They fit very well together as well. When the three of them are together nobody can match them,” he said.

The coach was then asked about Benzema.

“I believe he’s the world’s best attacker because he added great scoring numbers to his great playmaking ability. He can score goals like Cristiano Ronaldo or Haaland now and he makes the difference. We saw that during the match against Athletic, scoring twice in such a short period of time, he’s in great form,” he explained.

Ancelotti then answered a question about Camavinga.

“Yes, I see the fans’ smiles when they see Camavinga. These young players must realize that they have players like Modric, Kroos and Casemiro ahead of them, so they’re competing with the best of the world, and they must acknowledge that they will be the players of the future. Camavinga has tremendous quality and power, but he must learn and get experience for the position he plays in. He doesn’t have that yet but he’s only 19! Every day he trains alongside Modric, Kroos or Casemiro is like a college degree for him! I am sure that he learns and improves more with what he sees from his teammates than with what I tell him,” he added.

Ancelotti concluded his interview by praising and talking about Vinicius.

“Vinicius has improved because he does things more calmly now. He takes a moment when he has to, in every important play. The important thing for a player is to do well the things that are tough, because the easy ones will end up happening for you. Vinicius is now taking more time with the easy plays and things are working out for him. He has great talent and speed, I’d never seen a player with his dribbling ability and the great thing is that he still has room for improvement in things like his moves off the ball,” he concluded.