La Liga: Carlo Ancelotti hails Vinicius Jr. as 'best in the world' after Girona thrashing, calls win a ‘big statement'

La Liga: Carlo Ancelotti hails Vinicius Jr. as ‘best in the world’ after Girona thrashing, calls win a ‘big statement’

Real Madrid manager Carlo Ancelotti praised his side’s strong performance on Saturday, February 10, as they thrashed a promising Girona side to secure a healthy lead at the top of the La Liga table.

Los Blancos ran an onslaught over Michel Sanchez’s team, one of the top sides in the league, with a 4-0 win. Goals from Madrid’s Brazilian star winger, Vinicius Jr., and their ‘Zidane regen,’ Jude Bellingham, in the first half gave them an early lead. Bellingham scored again, and Rodrygo added the fourth goal in the second half, sealing their victory.

The win on Saturday took Ancelotti’s side five-points clear of second-placed Girona, who have been increasingly promising throughout the season. Beating both Barcelona and Atlético Madrid previously in the league, Girona’s big La Liga dreams were given a dent after this defeat.

‘Don Carlo’ did not step back from acknowledging the performance by Girona in the current season, as he hailed his side’s win as their ‘best performance’ this season.

“It was our best performance. A really complete display in every sense: defensively and going forward. It was a humble approach given the demands placed on us by the problems we had. It is a big statement in the fight for La Liga because Girona are a great team who hadn’t lost away from home,” Ancelotti said in the post-match press conference.

However, the 64-year-old Italian was not ready to take too much ease with their ‘slight advantage’ on the points table and stressed the importance of moving forward with the same mentality.

“We’re a game and a draw ahead at this stage of the season, but that’s all it is: a slight advantage. We’re well placed. We’ve done a great job so far but the Champions League will add to our fatigue and we must continue to show commitment and the right attitude,” Ancelotti added.

The manager went all out with words of praise for Vinicius’s performance on Saturday. Apart from his early goal, he was also the assisting force behind Madrid’s 3rd and 4th goals. Ancelotti even went to the lengths of hailing the 23-year-old as the ‘best in the world’.

“He put in a top performance. He’s absolutely superb at this level. He’s the best in the world when he plays like that,” Ancelotti said.

On the other hand, the win also came at a big cost for the Spanish giants as the game also saw their new star Bellingham, leave the pitch in the 54th minute after picking up an ankle injury.

“Bellingham picked up a sprained ankle, they’ll assess him tomorrow. I hope we can have him fit for Tuesday,” Ancelotti said.

Without ignoring the crucial nature of Bellingham’s potential absence in their upcoming fixtures, Ancelotti emphasised his trust in the other players in the squad who have previously stepped up when the situation demanded it.

“There are games he hasn’t been involved in and others have come in and contributed a lot, like Brahim and Joselu,” Ancelotti added.

Picking up some vital winning momentum from this game, Real Madrid will now be moving on to their highly anticipated UEFA Champions League Round of 16 1st leg against Red Bull Leipzig on Wednesday, February 14.

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