Real Madrid boss Carlo Ancelotti insists he is not focused solely on disrupting Erling Haaland when his side face Manchester City in their Champions League semi-final second leg on Wednesday.
Madrid arrived in Manchester with honours even, following last week's 1-1 draw at the Bernabeu. Vinicius Jr. opened the scoring shortly before half-time, with City needing a long-range effort from Kevin De Bruyne to level the tie with less than 25 minutes remaining.
The Belgian stepped up to find the net after an uncharacteristically quiet night for Haaland, who was unable to get much change out of Antonio Rudiger and David Alaba. The Norwegian has been City's main threat all season with an incredible 52 goals - including 12 from nine Champions League appearances - but Ancelotti insists his analysis of the Blues goes further than their top-scorer.
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"When we evaluate a team, we don't just evaluate one player," Ancelotti said when asked about Haaland. "It's not just about Haaland, you have to appraise everyone. If you control Haaland you can’t forget about [Bernardo] Silva, all the other players, [Kevin] De Bruyne. What we are clear on is that if they have to score, let it be soon. That way, we'll have more time to react.
"Courage is essential in this type of game. Both individually and collectively. You have to have a strong character and know how to endure and suffer.
"We know it is very likely that City will score in the first minutes. We all remember what happened last season. It will be an exciting match. That's for sure."
With two teams so evenly matched going into the second leg level, the prospect of a penalty shootout to decide who gets a place in the final becomes a daunting prospect for those involved. The removal of the away goals rule means a draw by any score on Wednesday would lead to extra time and the potential of spot-kicks.
But Ancelotti insists he has not thought about such a scenario, instead focusing on winning the tie within the 90 minutes.
"We don't think about this but about winning the match," the Italian added. "It would be wrong. It is always difficult to train a few penalties, because in a semi-final. It is very emotional and practicing that feeling is almost impossible."
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