"The insults to Asencio should not be tolerated, he was affected"

As Real Madrid pay a visit to the Estadio Benito Villamarin on Saturday to face Betis, Carlo Ancelotti answered the media's questions during his pre-match press conference early today. 'Los Blancos' are level on points with Barcelona (54), who will host Real Sociedad on Sunday, but can claim first place momentarily with a win against 'Los Verdiblancos'.

However, they will have to do so without Federico Valverde in the middle of the park. "It's not an injury. Fede has a slight discomfort and will not be available tomorrow, but he will be there for the next game," the Real Madrid head coach told reporters after the Uruguayan had missed the first leg of the Copa del Rey semi-final against Real Sociedad on Tuesday.

In the midweek clash at the Reale Arena, Raul Asencio, who is under investigation for allegedly sharing a sexual video without the consent of a minor, was targeted by death threats from the home supporters. The game was stopped when the anti-violence-hate protocol was activated, with Ancelotti later confirming that the player was "affected" by the chants.

Asked to comment on the situation again, the Italian manager said: "He is doing okay. He's recovering well. He was affected and it's normal. It's been a couple of days and he's ready to play now. It was something that shouldn't have happened. The protocol was executed well. Will he start again against Betis? I put him in the starting lineup without thinking about exterior factors. I'm only saying that this shouldn't have happened, insults should not be tolerated."

Moving on from Real Sociedad territory, Ancelotti spared a few words on his upcoming opponents. "We have a good dynamic but so does Betis. They are a rival that works well, they have both individual and collective qualities. It's a game with a lot at stake," he said.

One of the big talking points ahead of the match was Antony's overturned red card against Getafe. The Brazilian was due to miss out on Saturday's match but is now back available for Betis after their appeal against the sending-off was accepted by the Spanish Football Federation. Ancelotti chose not to comment on the situation as he said. "I will only talk about Bellingham, which I think was unfair. But I don't want to speak about Antony."

Kylian Mbappe's name was also brought up by the media after the Frenchman was ruled out against Real Sociedad due to dental surgery. Asked if the striker had recovered from the toothache, the 65-year-old humorously responded: "Well, the tooth is gone but Kylian is doing well. I don't think he will be getting the tooth back but other than that, he is okay."

Speaking on Luka Modric, Ancelotti insisted that the Croatian midfielder is in optimum fitness conditions to start back-to-back games despite his age. "I'm going to be polite, Modric can play. He is one of the few players that has not been injured and he is in great physical shape. I don't see what he can't play two games in a row, the data we have shows that he is a player that is doing very well."

With Dani Ceballos sidelined for two months, Ancelotti backed Eduardo Camavinga to step up and reclaim his place in midfield. "People forget that Camavinga played a Champions League final last year, that the two pivots were Kroos and Camavinga," he affirmed. "He has the quality to play and so do Modric, Tchouameni... It's a shame for Ceballos, he was contributing a lot, but as always we have replacements"

The Real Madrid boss concluded his press conference with a note on Vinicius Junior, who wore the captain's armband for the first time against Real Sociedad midweek. "He behaved like a true captain. Everyone was pleased with him. Vinicius is helping a lot. He has changed the squad a lot because forwards work a lot, the whole team now is more solid," he said on the Brazilian star.