Carlo Ancelotti joked of reaching 200 Champions League victories with Real Madrid after he matched Alex Ferguson s record following Wednesday s win over Celtic.
First-half penalties from Luka Modric and Rodrygo, followed by second-half strikes from Marco Asensio, Vinicius Junior, and Federico Valverde saw Madrid ease to a 5-1 win at the Santiago Bernabeu.
The win was Ancelotti s 102nd in the Champions League, drawing him level with Manchester United great Ferguson for the most victories by a coach in the competition.
When asked about matching the record, Ancelotti quipped: Let s go for the 200. Happy to do it here at Madrid!
It s been a lot of games on the bench. I think I ve done pretty well.
102 Carlo Ancelotti has equalled Alex Ferguson as the manager with the most wins in the UEFA Champions League history: 102 wins for him, excluding the awarded victory in the 2004/05 Milan Derby. Top.
— OptaPaolo (@OptaPaolo)
The result also secured top spot in Group F for the Champions League holders, who won their pool for a third successive season.
Madrid had to come through matches against Paris Saint-Germain, Chelsea and Manchester City before beating Liverpool in the final.
On who Madrid might end up facing in the next round, Ancelotti was typically laid back.
After last year, it s better not to look at it. Going there [to play the away fixture] first gives you a small advantage, but not too much, he said.
The return home last year helped us a lot. The second game at the Bernabeu helps us.
Jota grabbed a late consolation for Celtic, who saw a first-half penalty saved by Thibaut Courtois. Asked by BT Sport how important the Belgium goalkeeper is for Madrid, Ancelotti said: A good team is a good goalkeeper, good defenders, good midfielders, and a good striker – and also a good coach!
This is the most important thing, he added with a smirk.
Celtic had their chances aside from the penalty, though found themselves in the unprecedented position of being 2-0 down to two spot-kicks inside the first 21 minutes.
Both penalties were awarded for handball, and the decisions seemed harsh, in particular the second, with Matt O Riley unable to move away from a shot hit straight at him.
A perplexed Joe Hart told BT Sport: I don t think either of them intentionally used their hand, I think that goes without saying.
I spoke to Matt and he said his hands were inside him, and it hit him – what do they want him to do? Chop his arms off?
