Ancelotti on Madrid starting XI with no Spaniards against Villarreal

Real Madrid boss Carlo Ancelotti was keen to play down the fact that his side lost 2-1 to Villarreal last Saturday and fielded a starting eleven without any Spaniards for the first time in the club's history, claiming it was simply "a fluke".

"The core of this club is Spanish, although the club is universal. We have Spaniards in the youth academy, which is to be praised because it is the one that produces the most players in La Liga. What happened at Villarreal was a fluke," he told a press conference.

Ancelotti appreciated the fact that both the semi-final against Valencia and the final of the Spanish Super Cup could be decided from 12 yards and said that he does not over-prepare for penalty kicks.

"We don't train penalties very much. The players take them at the end of training and I can assess whether they take them better or worse. Then I have to choose and sometimes it's difficult to find five. The mental factor also comes into play and it's very complicated. Also, it's impossible to simulate what a penalty shoot-out is like in training," he said.