Los Blancos oozing confidence for final – Carlo
CARLO Ancelotti insists his Real Madrid men “ooze confidence” ahead of their Champions League final but admits he still gets pre-match jitters despite his own unparalleled success.
Los Blancos meet Borussia Dortmund on Saturday night at Wembley, where Ancelotti could add to his four Champions League trophies as a coach, already more than any other boss in the history of the competition.
Though he is now 40 years removed from his first European Cup final appearance with Roma in 1984, the 64-year-old feels little has changed when it comes to his personal experience of the build-up.
He said: “The days leading up to the final are always the same. Plenty of excitement, because it’s the biggest game of the season for everyone involved.
“Three as a player, sixth final as a manager. Happy to be here, the worries will come later on, and maybe that fear, but until then I’m going to enjoy the moment.
“Saturday afternoon, that’s when the fear arrives. I look at my team and they ooze confidence. I can see them totally focused on this final.”
Ancelotti downplayed the suggestion that his side, looking to extend their record eight Champions League final wins, will be the favourites on Saturday.
He has also largely resisted the temptation to grill information out of England international Jude Bellingham, who joined the LaLiga champions from BVB last summer.
Ancelotti explained: “No, no. Of course he’s a former Dortmund player, but there’s no need to ask too much about his ex-club because there’s a lot of information out there.
“We’ve seen all their games. We’ve studied our opponents well.”