Real Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti has said that opposition supporters must stop chanting insults at defender Raúl Asencio.
Wednesday’s Copa del Rey semifinal was briefly halted after Real Sociedad fans aimed chants of “Asencio, die” at the defender, with Ancelotti then substituting him at half-time.
Asencio, 22, has become a regular target for rival supporters due to an investigation into his alleged role in the distribution of a sexually explicit video involving a minor.
“He is doing well now, but he was affected by it,” Ancelotti said in a news conference ahead of Saturday’s trip to Real Betis in LaLiga.
“It is normal [to be affected] after what happened in the game. But, after a few days, he’s ready to play tomorrow.
“Something happened that shouldn’t happen, but the protocol was correctly applied. If it happens again, then the officials must apply the protocol again just as the referee did the other day.”
The game against La Real was paused just before the break when referee José María Sánchez Martínez was notified of the chants by Madrid captain Vinícius Júnior.
The official activated Spain’s anti-hate protocol, which states that in the first instance, a message is displayed on the stadium’s big screens and read over loudspeakers.
Ancelotti subsequently took Asencio off because of the incident, but he said the furore surrounding the academy graduate will not alter his team selections moving forward.
“We feel that this is something that should not happen, full stop,” Ancelotti said. “The insults should not happen, but it will not condition whether I put him in the team or not.”
Earlier this month, a court in the Canary Islands ruled that the investigation against Asencio should continue.
He is alleged to have shared a sexual video recorded by three other former Madrid academy players of an encounter with two girls, one of whom was a minor, in June 2023.
Meanwhile, Ancelotti praised Vinícius and his fellow forwards for making the team more solid by working harder without the ball in recent weeks.
“Vinícius is helping a lot,” he said. “The team has changed a lot in the sense that the forwards are working hard. The team is more solid in that sense.
“We have spoken about that many times. Not just with Vinícius, but with the whole team. All the team agree with this.
“There has clearly been a change of chip in that regard in recent weeks. I think since the Atlético Madrid game [on Feb. 8], the team has changed defensively.”
Madrid will be without Dani Ceballos at Betis this weekend after the midfielder was ruled out for two months this week, while Federico Valverde will also miss the game with a knock.
Ancelotti said Valverde will be back for the Champions League game against Atlético Madrid in midweek and backed Eduardo Camavinga and Luka Modric to fill in.
Kylian Mbappé is available again after having a molar removed as Madrid look to temporarily move three points clear of Barça, who host Real Sociedad on Sunday, at the top of LaLiga.