Bale Is The New Hero[/b]
Carlo Ancelotti hailed Gareth Bale after the Welshman’s late goal sunk Barcelona and gave Real Madrid the Copa Del Rey for the 19th time in their history.
The Welshman galloped towards goal with five minutes remaining and had to swerve off the pitch to beat the Barcelona defender Marc Bartra before sliding the ball through the legs of the goalkeeper Jose Manuel Pinto to secure a 2-1 win. The goal came after Bartra had pulled Barcelona back into the game with a powerful header, which cancelled out Angel Di María’s first-half opener. It was Bale’s first match winning goal since joining Madrid from Tottenham Hotspur last summer for a world-record fee.
The win earned Ancelotti his first trophy since succeeding Jose Mourinho as the Madrid manager last summer, and kept the team’s hopes of securing a treble alive. Ancelotti added: I think we played very well; we were playing against a very strong team. We had to suffer at times but I think it is a deserved victory. We are very proud to have won this competition.
Next up for Madrid is their Champions League semi-final tie with the holders, Bayern Munich, while they trail the Primera Division leaders, Atletico Madrid, by three points with five games of the campaign to go. Barcelona, meanwhile, look set for their first season without a trophy since 2008, knocked out of the Champions League by Atletico and four points adrift of Atletico side in the table. However, Ancelotti refused to write off the Catalans.
Gerardo Martino could not hide his disappointment at his side’s third straight defeat. The Barcelona manager said: Obviously this is not a happy time for us. It has been a very hard week for us but there is nothing else we can do but look ahead to what is left of the league season. It is a very hard blow to take, the expectation on us today was huge and it was a final so everyone was desperate to win. However, the beleaguered coach vowed to keep going until the end of the campaign. I am hurting due to the defeat and for the people that came here with great expectations to support us, but we still have a lot left in the tank, he said. There is no recipe for recovery. The league doesn’t look favorable for us but we are obliged to fight on until the last day.
Carlo Ancelotti hailed Gareth Bale after the Welshman’s late goal sunk Barcelona and gave Real Madrid the Copa Del Rey for the 19th time in their history.
The Welshman galloped towards goal with five minutes remaining and had to swerve off the pitch to beat the Barcelona defender Marc Bartra before sliding the ball through the legs of the goalkeeper Jose Manuel Pinto to secure a 2-1 win. The goal came after Bartra had pulled Barcelona back into the game with a powerful header, which cancelled out Angel Di María’s first-half opener. It was Bale’s first match winning goal since joining Madrid from Tottenham Hotspur last summer for a world-record fee.
The win earned Ancelotti his first trophy since succeeding Jose Mourinho as the Madrid manager last summer, and kept the team’s hopes of securing a treble alive. Ancelotti added: I think we played very well; we were playing against a very strong team. We had to suffer at times but I think it is a deserved victory. We are very proud to have won this competition.
Next up for Madrid is their Champions League semi-final tie with the holders, Bayern Munich, while they trail the Primera Division leaders, Atletico Madrid, by three points with five games of the campaign to go. Barcelona, meanwhile, look set for their first season without a trophy since 2008, knocked out of the Champions League by Atletico and four points adrift of Atletico side in the table. However, Ancelotti refused to write off the Catalans.
Gerardo Martino could not hide his disappointment at his side’s third straight defeat. The Barcelona manager said: Obviously this is not a happy time for us. It has been a very hard week for us but there is nothing else we can do but look ahead to what is left of the league season. It is a very hard blow to take, the expectation on us today was huge and it was a final so everyone was desperate to win. However, the beleaguered coach vowed to keep going until the end of the campaign. I am hurting due to the defeat and for the people that came here with great expectations to support us, but we still have a lot left in the tank, he said. There is no recipe for recovery. The league doesn’t look favorable for us but we are obliged to fight on until the last day.