The 36-year-old spent 16 years at Spanish giants Madrid, winning six La Liga titles and five Champions League trophies.

Ancelotti rested several key starters ahead of Saturday's LaLiga derby against Atletico Madrid and next-week's Champions League playoff clash at Manchester City.

Los Blancos were beaten 1-0 at relegation-battling Espanyol on Saturday and subsequently sent a furious letter to the Spanish football federation blasting the country's refereeing as "rigged" and "completely discredited".

Pep Guardiola fears Manchester City's bid to knock holders Real Madrid out of the Champions League will be hampered by the gruelling demands of the Premier League schedule.

Defending champions Real Madrid will play 2023 winners Manchester City in a blockbuster Champions League knockout phase playoff tie after the two teams were pitted against each other in the draw held in Nyon on Friday.

Kylian Mbappe is showing the form that made Madrid crave his arrival for years as Los Blancos swerve a potential crisis.

The holders will face either Celtic or Manchester City in the two-legged playoff on February, with the second leg at home.

The reigning champions of Europe are ensured of their place in at least the knockout play-off round as the league phase of the revamped Champions League wraps up with its final matchday this week.

Real Madrid Manager Carlo Ancelotti was overjoyed with Kylian Mbappe's first hat-trick for the club as they beat bottom side Real Valladolid 3-0 away on Saturday to extend their lead atop LaLiga to four points.

Mbappe has hit his devastating best in recent weeks after struggling for consistency following his summer switch from Paris Saint-Germain.

Real Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti quashed rumours regarding the future of star forward Vinicius Junior on Friday, saying the Brazilian is committed to staying with the reigning European and Spanish champions.

Ancelotti heaped praise on his forwards, with Brazilians Vinicius Jr and Rodrygo scoring twice either side of a goal by Kylian Mbappe as last year's winners secured a spot in the knockout stage.

The order of the clubs at the top of Deloitte's annual Football Money League stayed the same, with Madrid (1.05 billion euros, $1.09 billion) followed by Premier League champions Manchester City (838 million euros) and Paris Saint-Germain (806 million euros).

The Italian coach said that he was never in doubt that the 26-year-old forward was going to find his form despite a slow start in the Spanish capital after arriving from Paris St Germain, playing in a more centralised role up front.

Aurelien Tchouameni dropped out of Real Madrid's squad to face Las Palmas in La Liga on Sunday "due to discomfort in his left leg", said the Spanish champions in a statement.

The former Paris Saint-Germain superstar struggled to find his top level after completing his dream move last summer but now has 16 goals in 29 games across all competitions.

Real Madrid midfielder Eduardo Camavinga has been sidelined with a hamstring injury suffered during the club's 5-2 Copa del Rey win over Celta Viga, the club said Friday.

As the game looked destined for a penalty shootout, 18-year-old substitute Endrick worked his magic to give the lead back to the home side with a sharp swivel and shot from the edge of the box in the 108th minute.

Real Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti on Wednesday demanded a rapid reaction from his team after their capitulation against rivals Barcelona in the Spanish Super Cup final.

Lamine Yamal, Robert Lewandowski, Raphinha and Alejandro Balde were all on target before halftime, after French forward Kylian Mbappe put Real in front in the fifth minute. Raphinha grabbed another in the second half while Rodrygo scored for Real.