Carlo Ancelotti admitted Real Madrid made “a lot of mistakes” but also did “a lot of good things” in a 4-4 draw with Real Sociedad on Tuesday, which saw them reach the Copa del Rey final 5-4 on aggregate.
A thrilling game saw the visitors lead 3-1 at the Santiago Bernabéu after 80 minutes, before goals from Jude Bellingham and Aurélien Tchouaméni made it 3-3, and then Mikel Oyarzabal‘s 93rd minute goal sent the semifinal into extra time.
Antonio Rüdiger‘s excellent header in the 115th minute sent Madrid into the cup final in Seville on April 26, where they’ll face Barcelona or Atlético Madrid.
“It was an entertaining game with a lot of goals, and a lot of good things,” Ancelotti said in his post-match news conference. “We’ve achieved our objective, we’re in another final.
“A lot of good things, a lot of mistakes, but in the end, we did it.”
Ancelotti insisted that even at 3-1 down, he hadn’t feared that Madrid would be eliminated.
“I never thought we were out,” he said. “Anything can happen in the Bernabéu, above all in these games with this kind of atmosphere, when we have to fight back. We never give up.”
Ancelotti praised Vinicius Junior, who created two goals with two sensational assists, as being “decisive” and “showing all his qualities” as well as youngster Endrick, who scored Madrid’s opener.
“It’s what we ask of [Endrick], to be ready,” Ancelotti said. “He made a good run, a good pass [from Vinícius] and a fantastic finish. That’s Endrick, he doesn’t touch the ball much, but he’s very clinical.”
Endrick has seen his minutes limited this season as he competes with Kylian Mbappé for a place in attack, but he has now scored five goals in five Copa del Rey appearances.
“I have to make the most of it when I play,” Endrick told Real Madrid TV. “I know how difficult it is to play here, with the four best in the world in attack. Vini, Kylian, Jude and Rodrygo are incredible players, but when I have an opportunity, I have to help the team.”
Goalscorer Tchouameni accepted Madrid “can’t be happy” with their performance.
“We gave everything until the end, but we have to play better,” the midfielder said. “We had to keep creating chances, and that’s what we did. But we should do better.”
Atlético host Barça in their semifinal second leg at the Metropolitano on Wednesday, after their first leg ended 4-4.
