Carlo Ancelotti spoke to the media gathered at the Emirates Stadium following the clash against Arsenal. The Real Madrid coach reflected: "It's a tough loss. We weren't expecting this. The team looked pretty good and well organised in the first half. Following the two set-piece goals, the team dropped off both mentally and physically. It was a difficult end to the game because we didn't see the reaction we're used to seeing from this team. The final 30 minutes were very poor. There are two assessments here: one that I was satisfied up to 0-0, and the other following the reaction to their goals, which was really poor."

“We have to do everything we can to try and recover. The chances are pretty slim but we have to try, and we'll try and do it any way we can. Let's see if we can pull it off. It feels as though there's no chance after tonight, but things always change in football. Nobody expected Arsenal to score two free-kicks, but anything can happen. It's very tough, but stranger things have happened at the Bernabéu."

Why did the team drop off in the second half?
“It's hard to explain. There was no collective reaction, we were trying to do things individually. They controlled the ball better and managed the result."

Arsenal
“They showed a better attitude, more quality and impressive fitness levels today. They did a lot of things better than us and we have to be honest with ourselves. We weren't too bad for an hour, we played pretty well in the first half."

Do you feel responsible for the result?
“Without a doubt."

The front four
“The best players have to play, not sit on the bench. Then it's about organising things to make sure you're a compact unit, and we weren't able to do that tonight."