Ancelotti keen to bounce back

Posted Wednesday, October 02, 2013 by PA

Real Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti is looking for an immediate reaction from his side against FC Copenhagen as they attempt to bounce back from their derby defeat at the hands of Atletico Madrid and make amends to their fans.

However, they will have to do it without record signing Gareth Bale as the 100million euro man was on Tuesday night ruled out with a thigh problem which will see him undergo tests on Wednesday.

The Wales international also missed last week's matches against Getafe and Elche with "muscle fatigue" in the same thigh but returned to make his home debut for Madrid in the second half of Saturday's derby loss to Atletico.

And it is memories of that match which Madrid will be looking to banish when they play host to Danish champions FCK.

An early Diego Costa goal gave Atletico a deserved 1-0 win at the Bernabeu and with it their first league triumph over their bitter rivals since 1999.

That result came three days after Real stuttered their way to an uninspiring 2-1 victory at promoted Elche - Cristiano Ronaldo scoring a 94th-minute winner from the penalty spot - and left supporters far from impressed with what they were seeing.

Ancelotti, who replaced Jose Mourinho in the summer, accepts the fans have a right to be unhappy but is confident his side will soon be making a better impression.

"This is my responsibility. I'm going to fix it, it's normal that they are upset," he said in his pre-match press conference.

"It's a motivation for me because I want the public to enjoy Real Madrid.

"The results were good up until last week. We haven't started to play naturally yet. You need to have more time for the players to use the system in the most natural way possible. We've changed many things."

The Italian added: "It's not good to lose a derby and we need a quick reaction, both in our play and in results.

"I have confidence in the players and I think they're going to respond well. The game against Copenhagen is a good chance to recover.

"The team will play well very soon."

While their defeat to Atletico left them five points behind their city rivals and Barcelona in the Primera Division standings, Real are top of their Champions League group after thrashing Galatasaray 6-1 away in their opening Group B match.

FCK, meanwhile, are two points back heading into their first-ever meeting with Madrid after holding Juventus 1-1 in their first match.

That was a notable result for the Danish champions, not least because it came during a miserable start to their domestic season which currently sees them stuck in the bottom two with just two wins from 10 matches.

Despite that form, coach Stale Solbakken is still hoping his side can give Madrid a scare.

"Our immediate aim is to play a fantastic match here tomorrow and then to get maximum points against Galatasaray in Copenhagen. Obviously we need points away from home, too, and it is just possible that we could give Madrid a fright," he said on www.uefa.com.