Football “is a party and you can celebrate when things are going well”, Carlo Ancelotti said at a news conference, adding: “But when they’re not going well there’s no celebration to be had.”
Football matches in Spain should not have been played at the weekend following last Tuesday’s devastating flooding that killed at least 217 people, the Real Madrid manager has said.
Real’s match at Valencia scheduled for Saturday was one of two top-flight games postponed, but other LaLiga games went ahead.
Ancelotti made the remarks at a news conference ahead of a Champions League match against AC Milan at the Bernabeu on Tuesday.
“A week has passed since the tragedy unfolded,” he said.
“We’re very sad and we’re very close to all the people affected.
“Hopefully, this can be dealt with soon. In this respect, I want you to understand that talking about football at this time is difficult, just like playing.”
‘Unbelievable and terrible’ flooding
Ancelotti said it had been “very difficult” preparing for the AC Milan match while Spain deals with the aftermath of the disaster that hit the Valencia region.
“It’s very difficult [preparing] as you don’t have your mind on your work all the time. Inevitably, it affects everybody. When you hear and read what has happened, it’s unbelievable and terrible,” he said.
“We have prepared for this game because we are professionals and we will try to play and win it. That’s what we have to do.
“We don’t really want to speak about football because, in comparison to what happened in Valencia, it’s not important. It’s our profession and we carry on, but everything else is secondary”.