Carlo Ancelotti hopes Real Madrid Club World Cup success can boost domestic form

By PA Sport staff

Real Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti hopes his side’s Club World Cup success will prove a catalyst for further honours this season after recent domestic struggles.

The European champions claimed their fifth Club World Cup crown after beating Saudi Arabian side Al-Hilal 5-3 in Saturday’s final in Rabat.

Vinicius Junior and Federico Valverde both struck twice for the Spanish giants with Karim Benzema, part of the Madrid squad that won the trophy in 2014, 2016, 2017 and 2018, also on the scoresheet.

About last night... ⚪️🏆@RealMadrid | #ClubWC

— FIFA World Cup (@FIFAWorldCup) February 12, 2023

Former Atletico Madrid forward Luciano Vietto netted a second-half brace for Al-Hilal after Moussa Marega had pulled a goal back before the break, but Real were largely in control for much of the clash.

Real’s triumph in Morocco comes amid a testing time in their LaLiga title defence, having won just two of their last five matches to fall eight points behind leaders Barcelona, but Ancelotti hopes their Club World Cup win can lead to more silverware.

Madrid are in the semi-finals of the Copa del Rey, where they face arch rivals Barca, while they also have a Champions League last-16 tie against Liverpool coming up.

The Italian said on his club’s website: “We had a good tournament and we’ve shown improvement over the last few games. We have a lot of quality up front and we need to improve on some mistakes at the back.

“We’re also going to get players back who have been injured. Karim has returned and (Eder) Militao and (Thibaut) Courtois will be back soon.

“This title gives us a boost for the rest of the season. We have the desire and the will to do our best in all competitions and in every minute of every game.”

Madrid midfielder Toni Kroos, who claimed his sixth World Club title having also won the competition with Bayern Munich in 2013, added: “We come away from here feeling confident and with one more trophy in the bag.

“We’re motivated, but we have a very hard fixture calendar because we play every three or four days. But we’re ready for it and we’ll see how we perform.”