Ancelotti: 'Real's situation in La Liga is more complicated'

After the draw with Atletico, Real is still second with 52 points. But Ancelotti's army can be top of the table Barca - team against Almeria tonight 26/2 - widen the gap to 10 points.

"The situation is becoming more complicated, but Real have not given up hope in La Liga. We will fight until the last minute," Ancelotti replied after the game about the possibility of defending the championship.

In the Madrid derby, Real played better from the 64th minute, when Atletico striker Angel Correa received a direct red card for elbowing Antonio Rudiger in the chest.

However, Real conceded first. Jose Gimenez opened the scoring for Atletico in the 78th minute. The defending La Liga champions had to wait until 85 minutes to equalize. The youngster came on in the second half, Alvaro Rodriguez headed the equalizer.

Ancelotti ruled out the possibility that Real was down due to fatigue after returning from England, where they had just beaten Liverpool 5-2 in the first leg of the 1/8 Champions League round. He said that what made the difference between the two matches was the quality and form of Atletico's players.

"Griezmann was fantastic and Gimenez headed very well," admitted Ancelotti. "This is also in Alvaro Rodriguez. I don't think Real are physically tired, but mentally tired. This is normal, because this is our 17th game in 50 days."

The goal against Atletico was Alvaro Rodriguez's first Real goal. Ancelotti wants to put the 18-year-old striker 1.92 m tall in the first team from next season. "Very few players have the quality of Alvaro," said Ancelotti. "His height is important. He also handles the ball and heads well."

Real's next match is the semi-final first leg of the King's Cup, against Barca on March 2. Ancelotti's teachers and students have the home field advantage. The two teams will play the second leg on April 5 at Barca's field.

"We will give some players a break from training on February 26. After that, we will have two days of tactical preparation. On March 2, we will try our best with Barca," Ancelotti said.

In the first leg of La Liga this season, Real beat Barca 3-1 at home. However, in the final of the Spanish Super Cup on a neutral field, Barca won again 3-1. Besides the two semi-finals of the King's Cup, Real and Barca also met in the second leg in La Liga on March 19.