Berlin [Germany]: Ahead of Real Madrid's upcoming match against Union Berlin in the UEFA Champions League (UCL) on Wednesday at Olympiastadion Berlin, the Los Blancos manager Carlo Ancelotti said that they have achieved their target of finishing at the top of the group standings and now they want to finish strongly.
Speaking at the pre-match press conference, Ancelotti said that the 14-time UCL winners have done a great job in the league. He added that they want to finish the group stage on a positive note.
"We have achieved our aim of finishing top of the group. We've done a good job so far and now we want to finish strongly with a good game, and a positive performance. It's a special competition and we have to respect it with a good game. We're playing for our professionalism and our plan is to play well and try to win the game," Ancelotti said as quoted by Real Madrid's official website.
The Italian coach was optimistic and said that they have quality players in their squad to fight even though it will be a tough fight against the Berlin-based side.
"Given its history, Real Madrid is always a candidate to win this competition, whatever happens in the Group Stage. We've done really well, it's always tough to win it but we have the quality to fight until the end." he added.
When asked if his team will see any rotation in their upcoming game of the tournament, Ancelotti said that the players who are not tired will get a chance. He also added that the players who are fatigued after playing their La Liga game against Real Betis will be rested.
"My plan is to assess how the guys who played in Seville have recovered and then pick the best eleven from there. If the ones who played aren't tired, they can play, but if there are guys with fatigue after the Betis game then they will be rested. I won't be rotating for the sake of it, only if there is a player who's at risk of having problems due to fatigue," he added.
The Los Blancos are at their best form currently, in their previous five matches, they have not conceded any games. They are coming into this match after a 1-1 draw against Betis in La Liga.
—ANI