Real Madrid coach Arbeloa accepted full blame for the team's loss to Mallorca and urged his players to now focus on Tuesday's match against Bayern.
Alvaro Arbeloa did not hide his disappointment over Real Madrid's defeat in Mallorca, but he was convinced that this blow would not affect his players ahead of the first leg of the quarterfinals this Tuesday against Bayern at the Bernabeu.
To begin, the coach lamented the lack of reaction in the second half: "We did not have the patience or what we worked on during the week. Not being able to turn them around or get in from the outside. We played a better first half than the second half, knowing that we needed more energy in the second half and clarity of ideas."
The coach also acknowledged that the team lacked intensity at certain stages of the match: "For me, it is much easier to see the difficulty of the match, the opponent, and the context. For me, it is easy to see; the difficult thing is for the players to understand that without 200% today, we would not have been able to win.
We were superior in the first half, but on one defensive lapse, we fell behind. Here, the moment you lose concentration... When you lack precision, and they have it, this happens. Not playing a better second half than we did is what hurts me the most."
REUTERS"This defeat is mine, and I told the players that. All mine, and I need them to already think about Tuesday's match. I am the one who makes the decisions, I make the substitutions, and I tell them how they have to play. I need them to give their maximum in the Champions League, in an extremely important competition. When they leave the locker room, they must only think about Bayern," he added.
On Bellingham's performance, Arbeloa offered his analysis: "It is normal, he has been out for many weeks. On the day of the Atletico match, he played 20 minutes, today half an hour, and the idea is for him to continue gaining match fitness. Let's not expect Jude Bellingham to be at his maximum level without playing matches."
What consequences might the match leave? "None. I know what my players are capable of. I know they understand the importance of Tuesday's match. Sometimes they don't have their day, and things don't work out. We have to switch gears. The Madrid fans will give us another Champions League night. Without them, everything is more difficult, and with them, everything is easier."
Join The Conversation
Roundtablesports is Free to join! You can post your own thoughts, comment on articles, and start conversations with our Roundtable Writers.
Download the FREE Roundtable APP, and get even easier access to your favorite teams and news!