Carlo Ancelotti: Football should have stopped in Spain after flood disaster

Real Madrid boss Carlo Ancelotti says LaLiga matches should not have been played at the weekend following the devastating flooding in Spain.

The disaster caused by heavy downpours that hit the east of the country has killed more than 200 people.

Real’s fixture at Valencia that had been scheduled for Saturday was one of two top-flight games postponed, but the other matches went ahead.

Ancelotti told a press conference on Monday: “Football should have stopped this weekend.

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“Football is a party and you can celebrate when things are going well, but when they’re not going well there’s no celebration to be had. It’s the most important of the unimportant things in life. But we are employees, we are not the ones in charge.

“We have zero power. We can’t make any kind of decision. All the coaches had the same opinion not to play.”

Ancelotti was speaking ahead of Tuesday’s Champions League match against his former club AC Milan at the Bernabeu, and said it had been “very difficult” preparing for the contest.

“A week has passed since the tragedy unfolded,” he said. “We’re very sad and we’re very close to all the people affected.

“Hopefully, this can be dealt with soon. In this respect, I want you to understand that talking about football at this time is difficult, just like playing.

“It’s very difficult (preparing) as you don’t have your mind on your work all the time. Inevitably, it affects everybody. When you hear and read what has happened, it’s unbelievable and terrible.

“We have prepared for this game because we are professionals and we will try to play and win it. That’s what we have to do.

“We don’t really want to speak about football because, in comparison to what happened in Valencia, it’s not important. It’s our profession and we carry on, but everything else is secondary”.

Ancelotti was asked about last Monday’s Ballon d’Or ceremony in Paris, which Real’s delegation did not attend.

That was despite the Champions League holders being named men’s club of the year, Ancelotti taking the men’s coach of the year award, and Kylian Mbappe sharing the Gerd Muller Trophy for leading goalscorer alongside Bayern Munich’s Harry Kane.

Real forward Vinicius Junior finished second in the men’s player of the year award, with team-mates Jude Bellingham and Dani Carvajal third and fourth, behind winner Rodri of Manchester City.

Ancelotti said: “It’s over now, we congratulate all the winners and that’s it. My Ballon d’Or was awarded to me on June 1, when we won the European Cup.

“It’s been a difficult week because the atmosphere is unusual. However, we’re not sad because of that, the atmosphere is different because of what’s happening in Spain. He (Vinicius Junior) is sad, but not because he didn’t win the Ballon d’Or.”

UEFA announced there will be a moment of silence at all of its European club matches this week in memory of the victims of the deadly floods in Valencia and all those impacted in the region and beyond.

AC Milan coach Paulo Fonseca also offered his sympathy to the victims of the devastating flooding in Spain.

“I’m very sorry about the current hardship for these people,” Fonseca told Milan TV.

“We are all with them. We will all be ready to help them.”

AC Milan claimed their first Champions League points of the season with a 3-1 victory over 10-man Club Brugge at the San Siro two weeks ago.

Fonseca feels his squad are up for the challenge against Los Blancos.

“You approach a match like this with great motivation – it’s a big opportunity,” Fonseca said at a press conference.

“We are facing a team that is always among the favourites to win the Champions League, but we do so with courage.

“A match against Real Madrid is a chance to show our quality and the way we are growing.”