Carlo Ancelotti sheds further light on his surprising move from Everton to Real Madrid

Carlo Ancelotti has shed light on how his move from Everton to Real Madrid in 2021 wasn’t initially on the cards and took place out of the blue. 

Highlighting the story in his new book, The Dream, the current Brazilian national team coach mentioned that he had gotten in touch with Real Madrid to enquire about some of their players and get them to join the Blues before the conversation suddenly shifted to him rejoining Los Blancos. 

Appointed head coach at Goodison Park in 2019, Ancelotti spent a season and a half at Everton, during which the Toffees finished 12th and 10th in the league. However, despite signing a four-and-a-half-year contract, Ancelotti resigned from his position in the summer of 2021 to take up the vacant seat at Real Madrid following Zinedine Zidane’s departure.

“As the season came to a close, I challenged some of the players who I thought were not as motivated as they should be. If they wanted to leave, they could and they should. I would go and find replacements who could make a more positive contribution,” said Ancelotti.

"It was in search of such players that I got on the phone to Real Madrid, asking if they had anyone whom I could take on loan. And the conversation went in an unexpected direction.

"The answer was that they didn’t. Obviously, everyone knew that they were also in the market for a new manager since Zidane had resigned for the second time, citing a lack of support from the club. To replace him, they had lined up Massimiliano Allegri, who had won so many Scudetti at Juventus and led them to two Champions League finals.

"But at the last moment, he decided to remain at Juventus. The voice on the other end of the line complained that there were no coaches out there.

"'If no players,' I said, 'Could you use a new manager?' 'Do you know anybody?' came the response. 'Do you not remember what we did in 2014?' I responded. There was a silence."

Following this, Ancelotti shed light on having a discussion with Real Madrid president Florentino Perez.

“The next day, I was on a train when my phone rang. I looked at the screen and saw that it was Florentino Pérez. My first thought was, Please don’t let the train go into a tunnel now.

"It didn’t and we spoke. In ten minutes, the deal was done. It was a Saturday. I went to my director of football at Everton and explained the situation. The club was a bit stunned because everyone assumed, me included, that I would stay at Everton for the three years remaining on my contract.

"But that is football. Coaches rarely get to decide when they leave a job – I certainly didn’t at Real – so they shouldn’t be criticised when they do. This was too good an opportunity to ignore. The two clubs quickly agreed on compensation and, three days after I spoke to the president, I was presented to the Spanish media."

Ancelotti would go on to win two Champions League titles and two La Liga titles with Los Blancos before taking up as head coach of the Brazilian national team this summer.

 

---

Reader Comments

Note: the following content is not moderated or vetted by the site owners at the time of submission. Comments are the responsibility of the poster. Disclaimer ()

There are no responses so far to this article. Be the first to offer a comment using the form below.

How to get rid of these ads and support TW