Carlo Ancelotti gives compliment to Ronald Koeman and Barcelona ahead of El Clásico | OneFootball

Carlo Ancelotti believes Barcelona are rediscovering their identity following a turbulent few months.

Barca were the talk of the summer after losing Lionel Messi amid financial turmoil, while Antoine Griezmann also departed late in the window.

Performances on the pitch haven’t helped to lift the mood, Ronald Koeman‘s men getting off to their worst ever start in the Champions League.

But they are recovering, with players returning from injury, while an important win over Valencia saw the Blaugrana move within two points of Real Madrid ahead of this weekend’s Clásico, while new contracts for Ansu Fati and Pedri have also helped lift spirits.

Los Blancos boss Ancelotti has recognised that change in atmosphere, and he believes Barcelona are slowly rediscovering their identity.

“It’s a team that are coming back from many problems, but little by little, they are finding their identity and are improving,” said the Italian in his pre-match press conference.

“It’s not important how the team comes into this sort of game. It’s about what you do on the field. All of these games are like that.”

Real Madrid come into this one on the back of an impressive 5-0 away win over Shakhtar Donetsk in the Champions League.

That result followed back-to-back defeats across La Liga and the Champions League ahead of the international break.