Ancelotti talks Kepa, Endrick, Tchouameni, Alaba, Courtois, Militao, future ahead of Alaves vs Real Madrid

Real Madrid will lock horns with Deportivo Alaves in their final game before the mid-season break away at the Mendizorrotza Stadium on Thursday night.

Despite being plagued by a plethora of injury problems, Los Blancos have found ways to keep winning and are just two points shy of surprise league leaders Girona.

And, the idea will be to go into the mid-season break with another victory in the bag so that they can hit the ground running in 2024 when they recover a number of their injured players.

On the eve of the game against Alaves, Real Madrid manager Carlo Ancelotti addressed the media, discussing several topics including the injuries in the squad and his own future.

Kicking things off, the Italian confirmed who will start in goal for Los Blancos tomorrow, saying: "Tomorrow the goalkeeper will be Kepa, we have two great goalkeepers."

Ancelotti then discussed the role of Aurelien Tchouameni, who can play as a holding midfielder and an interior, while he has also been used as a centre-back in emergency situations.

"Tchouaméni’s future at Real Madrid is as a pivot, but he can play as a midfielder just as well as Camavinga as a full-back," Ancelotti stated.

On the UEFA Champions League draw for the Round of 16, that has seen Real Madrid get paired against RB Leipzig, the manager said: "It’s a team that competes well, that has good individuals and that will put us in trouble."

On La Liga’s decision to make the conversations between referees and the VAR public moving forward, the Real Madrid boss stated: "I don’t care what the referees talk about during the games. Listening to their conversations doesn’t change anything for me. I wish for 2024 that they make few mistakes."

Real Madrid had their future signing Endrick present at the Santiago Bernabeu for the Villarreal game, following which the teenager interacted with Ancelotti.

Talking about how it went, the manager said: "The experience that young players like Vini and Rodrygo have had coming out of Brazil is the experience he wants to have as well."

There has been a lot of debate about whether Real Madrid should sign a new player or not in January amidst the injury crisis. On the matter, Ancelotti remarked:

"I am not going to say if I would like to sign or not. Together we will think and make the best decision. It is a possibility to go to the market if a good option comes up."

Further discussing the matter, he added: "We are talking to the club and we will evaluate it in the next few days. We don’t want to rush it. The market ends on 31 January"

Discussing his own future, with a contract expiring in 2024, Ancelotti said: "The future is tomorrow’s game and the holidays. My contract ends in June and if there is anything new I will tell you."

Real Madrid have suffered three Anterior Cruciate Ligament (ACL) injuries this term with Eder Militao, Thibaut Courtois, and David Alaba falling victims. Discussing the nature of the injury, the manager stated:

"It’s an unpredictable injury, you can’t foresee it. Players like Alaba, Courtois, and Militao, who have not had any previous knee problems, have had injuries. Muscular problems can be prevented, but these can’t, unfortunately."

"We hope to have players like Courtois and Militao back by March-April," he further added.