Carlo Ancelotti hails Chicharito after late show puts Real Madrid through to the semi-final of the UCL

The former AC Milan boss described the stand-in striker as "a fantastic solution" as he took his opportunity to shine with Karim Benzema and Gareth Bale injured

Carlo Ancelotti described Javier 'Chicharito' Hernandez as a "fantastic solution" after the Mexican grabbed a late winner to edge Real Madrid into the Champions League semi-finals at the expense of Atletico.
After more than 178 minutes of goalless, attritional football across the two legs, Chicharito got on the end of a Cristiano Ronaldo pass to slide the ball home and end 10-man Atleti's resistance in the dying minutes at the Santiago Bernabeu.
The goal left the visitors, for whom Arda Turan was sent off 12 minutes earlier, with little time to muster a response.
Ancelotti had spoken beforehand of having solutions within his squad to the problems posed by the absences of Karim Benzema, Gareth Bale, Marcelo and Luka Modric.
And in on-loan Manchester United man Chicharito, he struck gold.
"He was a fantastic solution," the Italian said with a smile. "He played really well and with great intensity. He deserved it as he has hasn't played a lot this season. When I told him he was playing he was ready. He was really professional, I am happy for him."
Chicharito limped off shortly after his goal but Ancelotti played down any serious injury concerns.
"It is nothing special," he added. "He was tired. He is not used to playing 90 minutes."
Defending champions Madrid arguably merited their place in the last four after being the more proactive side in the return having dominated the first leg for long spells at the Vicente Calderon.
"We played a very good game," Ancelotti told Sky Sports. "We had good control of the game from the beginning, good possession. We didn't give them the chance to counterattack. We were strong from set-pieces and we found a solution."
Turan's red card, which came about after he picked up a second yellow for a high foot on Sergio Ramos, was an obvious turning point in a fractious affair but Ancelotti insisted there was a lot to admire about the players' conduct.
"Of course, to play with 10 men is more difficult. I don't know if it's right or not, it was the ref's decision. It was a game with intensity but the players showed good fair play."
Madrid will go into Friday's draw as third favourites behind Barcelona and Bayern Munich and Ancelotti was not willing to make any bold claims about his side's chances.
"We will try, it won't be easy, same as last year. When you're in the semis anything can happen, we are competitive of course, we try to do our best."

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