Real Madrid head coach Carlo Ancelotti made no excuses after his side suffered their first loss of their La Liga campaign with a 3-2 loss to Rayo Vallecano on Monday.
Los Blancos blew a 2-1 lead, with Alvaro Garcia rifling in a left-foot equalizer before half-time, before Oscar Trejo netted the game-winning penalty in the 67th minute after Dani Carvajal’s handball.
Trejo had his initial penalty saved by Thibault Courtois, but it was successfully re-taken with the Belgian goalkeeper having come off his line early the first time.
But Ancelotti would not use those referee decisions as excuses, instead pointing the finger at his team.
“We needed to be a bit tougher,” Ancelotti said. “We had trouble playing out from the back.
“We could’ve played more direct balls forward and we lost a few individual duels. The quality was lacking a bit for us to draw the game.
“We had chances to score that wed put away normally and we were a bit below par in terms of toughness.”
The defeat means Real are second on the table behind Barcelona, with Ancelotti’s side having managed only one point in their past two games.
Barca go to Osasuna on Tuesday, while Real host Cadiz on Wednesday in the final games before the World Cup break.
Ancelotti also refused to use the mid-season World Cup as an excuse either, with many of his players set to head off for Qatar next week.
“It’s not related to the World Cup,” he said. “Were heading into the break a bit stretched because we’ve played a lot of games. This is happening to every team.
“It’s hard to make it to the end and even more so when you play every three days. We’re not as fresh as we were before. In these types of games when the opposition presses you and is aggressive, you need players with fresh legs. It’s a normal thing.
“We’ve dropped off a bit but were still in the fight for everything. Were disappointed were not top, but its a long league season. The players are focused and doing their best. Sometimes things don’t go your way.”
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