Another Real poor performance has Ancelotti 'worried'

MADRID — There were plenty of jeers at the Santiago Bernabeu Stadium on Tuesday.

Before the match, when the Champions League anthem was played, and, again, after the match, when Real Madrid saw its 15-game unbeaten run in the Champions League come to an end.

Madrid fans still appeared upset by Vinicius Junior not winning the Ballon d'Or, but that was compounded by yet another poor performance by their team.

Madrid followed up its 4-0 loss to Barcelona in the Spanish league "clasico" with a 3-1 defeat to AC Milan in the Champions League, and coach Carlo Ancelotti didn't hide his concerns.

"We need to be worried, we are not showing the best version of ourselves," Ancelotti said. "We are not compact as a team, and we need to change that. We lack order in the team and, as a result, we're conceding too many goals."

Madrid, the European powerhouse that has a record 15 Champions League titles, has now conceded seven goals in four matches in the competition, with its other loss coming in a 1-0 away defeat to Lille. It has trailed in its last three games in the competition, though it rallied to beat Borussia Dortmund 5-2 in its other home game after conceding first.

"It's normal to be worried in this situation," Ancelotti said. "We'll endure long nights, but we have to work on improving things, and find the solidity that we've had for so long that we no longer seem to have."

The result left Madrid in 17th place in the 36-team league phase of the competition.

"We need to stick together and try to correct what we are doing badly," Madrid midfielder Luka Modric said. "It's not a crisis, that's not a word I like to use. I've been here 12 years, and it's not the first time I've seen this situation. Quality is not enough, we need to work more as a team, then it's easier for us. I'm sure we'll rise up again."

The defense has been a problem for Madrid, which has conceded 10 goals in its last four matches.

"It's too much for a team like ours," Ancelotti said. "Our strength was that we were a solid team."

The attack also faltered, with Kylian Mbappe again failing to click with his teammates.

"The issue is nothing to do with Vinicius and Mbappe, or whether they've struck up an understanding," Ancelotti said. "It's the ease with which the opposition gets close to our goal in dangerous situations. We have to work much more tightly together as a team in big moments. Right now, we are incapable of showing an effective work ethic."

It was Milan's first win against Real in 15 years.

"We won because the players had the courage to come here and not be afraid of anything, playing the game we wanted," Milan manager Paulo Fonseca said afterward.

"Today we showed that an Italian team came to the Bernabeu to play and not to defend."

Agencies Via Xinhua