Ancelotti: "I have the courage to ask Ronaldo for more"

Carlo Ancelotti, the Real Madrid coach, was full of praise for Cristiano Ronaldo: "Cristiano hasn't surprised me with his quality and his ability to score a lot of goals, but he has surprised me a little with his professionalism on and off the pitch. He is exemplary, due to his fair play - he doesn't protest. Football needs players like this, and players like Messi, Ribery, Pirlo, Thiago Silva... They give football a good image".
"Cristiano has managed very well this year. Winning the Ballon d'Or gives him a great deal of motivation, and trying to retain the prize next year will continue to drive him on. I don't think it is a burden. It's true that he now has a greater responsibility, and for his teammates that play with him. We can now ask for more from Cristiano because he has the Ballon d'Or, although that's not easy to do with him. Scoring more than 69 goals in a season is not easy, but I have the courage to ask him for more", said Ancelotti.
"He's excited because he loves football, because he puts in a lot of work to be the best. This is a reward for all the work that he is putting in", he said about the tears that Cristiano shed. "This prize is part talent and part work. In today's football you don't get anywhere without hard work. Talent is genetic and it requires work to be able to express that talent on the pitch", he added.
Ancelotti also spoke about Gareth Bale: "He might not have been so involved in recent games, but prior to the injury he played very well".