ANCELOTTI EXPECTS BALE, BENZEMA TO RETURN “QUICKLY” FOR CHAMPIONS LEAGUE SEMIFINAL

Carlo Ancelotti doesn’t even know who his Real Madrid side will face in the UEFA Champions League semifinals (the draw is scheduled for Friday at 5 am ET in Nyon, Switzerland), and the Italian manager is already making the Spanish giants a favorite of sorts.

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Ancelotti attributes the pre-semifinal position of power to the recovery from injury and expected availability of two of Real’s most important attacking figures.

According to Ancelotti, Gareth Bale and Karim Benzema, both of whom missed Wednesday’s quarterfinal second leg against Atletico Madrid, “will be fit quickly,” which the Italian manager infers to mean they will be very much in time for the Champions League semifinals.

“We will recover the injured players for the semi-finals so the things are going to improve,” said Ancelotti following Wednesday’s triumph in Madrid. “I think Bale and Benzema will be fit quickly but I…