Real Madrid suffered a shock 4-3 defeat at the hands of Schalke in their own backyard but they managed to reach the quarter finals of the Champions League quarters finals courtesy of a 2-0 win in the first leg in Gelsenkirchen. Real Madrid captain Iker Casillas was devastated after the defeat and said that Los Blancos have hit the rock bottom and they have to recover quickly.
Real Madrid went 3-2 ahead early in the second with the help of goals from Karim Benzema and Cristiano Ronaldo, after twice coming from behind in the first half, the Los Blancos were sensationally beaten 4-3 after Klaas-Jan Huntelaar inspired Schalke went within one goal of dumping them late in the match.
Real Madrid skipper Iker Casillas was not at all happy with the performance of his team mates in the entire game but urged them to make a strong come back.
a Ita s true we have hit rock bottom in a most resounding way. But the positive is that we will be in the draw next Friday,a said Casillas.
a When that draw is made we will forget what has happened over the past 10 days a they have been dramatic.
a We must think about tomorrow, we cannot look back, nor dwell on the 22 successive wins [earlier in the season] or anything else we have achieved.a
Casillas made a stunning save late in the match to avoid the early exit but the skipper refused to take credit for the same.
a I believe a goalkeeper is always to blame [after conceding four times],a Casillas said. a This was not one of my best games but ita s not the moment to think about myself.a
Real Madrid boss Carlo Ancelotti was also very angry after a defeat at the hands of Schalke and blamed his defenders for their mistakes.
“We need to look at our defence. That’s where all our errors are. No team has put four past us at home. We lacked organization,a said Carlo Ancelotti.
“I’m very sorry, as everyone saw, we played very badly and it’s bad for our image. All the criticism we get is justified. We’re professionals, we don’t make ourselves look ridiculous. It’s not easy to explain what happened. We’ve lost confidence.a
“What happened with the fans is normal. We are the first to say that we played badly and the whistles are deserved.”