Mumbai, November 5: Real Madrid will be hosting AC Milan in a cracking UEFA Champions League fixture on Wednesday (IST) but head coach Carlo Ancelotti believes Football should take a back seat amidst the tragic floods that have hit Spain and claimed a reported 217 lives as of now. Carlo Ancelotti, Emma Hayes Named Men's and Women's Johan Cruyff Trophy Winners at Ballon d'Or 2024 Awards.

“Good morning. It’s been a week of tragedy and we have sadness. This is the emotion. We are very close to Valencia and all the people affected. We are close to them and hopefully it can be resolved soon. I want you to understand that talking about football is complicated. So is playing football. We are part of this country and this affects a lot."

“Out of respect for everyone, I will try to keep the press conference as simple as possible, because I don’t feel like talking about football. Also, for me, it’s a special match tomorrow. I will try to talk as little as possible,” said Ancelotti in a pre-game press conference.

The Royal Spanish Football Federation had announced that the game on matchday 12 of LaLiga between Valencia and Real Madrid scheduled for Saturday was postponed.

Ancelotti was recently named the men’s head coach of the year at the 2024 Ballon d’Or ceremony. The Brazilian spoke on the state of Vinicius Jr after the forward was expected to win the trophy but was beaten by Manchester City and Spanish midfielder Rodri. Fans Target Argentina’s Rodrigo De Paul, American Singer Olivia Rodrigo on Social Media Mistaking Them for Rodri, Who Won Ballon d’Or 2024 Award Ahead of Vinicius Jr.

“It’s been a difficult week, because it’s not the normal atmosphere. But not because of what happened with the Ballon d’Or. It happened and that’s it. Congratulations to the winners. Sadness is not there, the sadness is because of what is happening here in Spain."

“He’s normal. He realises what is happening. Fortunately, we didn’t play on Saturday and Vinicius has trained well, like everyone else. Vinicius is sad, like us, but not because of the Ballon d’Or, but because he is looking at the situation in Valencia,” he added.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Nov 05, 2024 12:26 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).