REAL Madrid boss Carlo Ancelotti acknowledged that his side lacked balance and struggled to take control against lowly Leganes but praised their intensity in fighting back to seal a hard-fought 3-2 win over their city rivals on Saturday.

The Italian said his players put in a good performance for a victory that moved them level on points with LaLiga leaders Barcelona despite defensive lapses that saw them concede two goals and head into the break trailing 2-1.

"I don't think we played a bad game. We had control, but what we lacked was balance, which is why we conceded two goals," Ancelotti told reporters. "They hurt us on the counter and, losing possession, we suffered. We could have managed the lead better. With the 3-2 scoreline, we also struggled, but that's how it is after the international break. It takes time to find our rhythm.

Real took the lead through a Kylian Mbappe penalty but were quickly pegged back when Diego Garcia equalised before Dani Raba put the visitors ahead just before halftime."After the penalty, we could have managed things better. The team was not well positioned, and we conceded," added Ancelotti.

He insisted there was not a lack of focus from his team and said suffering to secure wins is part of the game."We had the intensity. We showed it in the second half and managed to turn the game around," he said.

"You have to suffer. I don't remember a game where we haven't suffered. What matters is suffering together. When sacrifices have to be made, we all make them."Football matches are like this, there is no such thing as an easy game, and we are fully aware of that."

The coach also praised Mbappe, who scored twice to reach 33 goals in all competitions for the club this season, equalling Cristiano Ronaldo's tally in his first term at Real."He's doing really well. Much more active, more involved in the game," Ancelotti said of the France captain.

"He has adapted well and is making the difference, which is exactly what we expect from him."Real have 63 points from 29 matches along with Barca, who were to host Girona later yesterday. Third-placed Atletico Madrid dropped points in a 1-1 draw at Espanyol earlier on Saturday and are now six points off the pace with 57.

"It was difficult match. After the international break it's always difficult," Mbappe told RMTV. The hosts made a dominant start and opened the scoring after 32 minutes when Mbappe coolly chipped in a penalty, awarded after Oscar Rodriguez brought down Arda Guler.

However, Leganes responded almost immediately as Garcia tapped in a loose ball at the far post to equalise in the following minute before Rodriguez set up Raba to slot past goalkeeper Andriy Lunin in the 41st.

Real midfielder Jude Bellingham brought the scores level two minutes after the break, sliding the ball into the net after a rebound off the crossbar. Mbappe then bagged the winner with a brilliant curled free kick in the 76th minute for his second.

"We know what we always have to do: win. We started well, in the opposition half, and we scored a goal. Then we didn't play well for 20 minutes and conceded two goals," said Mbappe. "But we know that if we play well we'll score and in the second half we scored two goals. We won the game and we're very happy.

"We worked on (the set piece) a few weeks ago with the staff. I knew I could shoot this way, I saw the space. I asked the others to let me shoot and it worked out well."Leganes pushed for an equaliser but fell to a third consecutive defeat to sit 18th on 27 points, level with Alaves who are one place higher in the safety zone on goal difference.

"We have done a tremendous job. We leave with our heads held high because we were fighting until the end to score here," Leganes striker Garcia said. "Ultimately, it was down to the details that they took it. We played a very serious game and now we have to think about next week."

Real host Real Sociedad in their Copa del Rey semi-final second leg on Tuesday holding a 1-0 lead before welcoming Valencia in LaLiga next Saturday and then visiting Arsenal in their Champions League quarter-final first leg.