"Hopefully he can play the next game" - Carlo Ancelotti makes surprise comments on Vinicius Jr after Real Madrid star is sent off vs Valencia 

Real Madrid manager Carlo Ancelotti has revealed that the club will be appealing the red card given to Vinicius Jr. He believes that they will be successful in the appeal, and the Brazilian will be able to play in the next match.

Speaking to the media after the dramatic 2-1 win over Valencia on Friday (January 3), Ancelotti admitted that Vinicius Jr got two yellow cards and not a direct red card. The manager praised the players for bouncing back and winning the match, saying (via forbes.com):

"What we think is that it was not red, it was two yellows. He has been sent off, but the team has reacted to this difficulty, as it reacted to the missed penalty. We are going to appeal, I don't know if they will accept it. I haven't said anything, I've congratulated the players, I told them the same thing as here. It was a touch before the goalkeeper and then a push.

"I think that with two yellows it was enough, the issue was over. I don't mean that he has fallen into the trap. He has tried to do things well, as always, sometimes it works out and sometimes a little less. But that's the end of it. Hopefully he can play the next game, he continues to be decisive for us."

Real Madrid were 1-0 down in the 77th minute when Vinicius Jr was sent off for violent conduct. Luka Modric and Jude Bellingham scored in the dying minutes of the match to turn the game on its head and seal the win.

Carlo Ancelotti admits Real Madrid were bad in the first half, but claims they deserved three points

Carlo Ancelotti admitted after the 2-1 win that Real Madrid could not do much in the first half but did all they needed to get the three points in the second half. He believes that they did better after going down to 10-men (via Madrid Universal):

“It’s difficult to explain how badly we did in the first half and how good we were in the second, and with one less. They are three deserved points, but we cannot show these two sides. The first half was tremendously bad, the second half was tremendously good with ten.”

Real Madrid have now moved to the top of the table – five clear of third-placed Barcelona. They could slip to second if Atletico Madrid win their match in hand.