Opinion | Ancelotti The Real Deal? - Football News

After the longest wait for a Real Madrid manager to be unveiled, manager elect Carlo Ancelotti has been confirmed as the man Florentino Perez hopes to take the side forward, unite the dressing room again and of course and probably most vitally of all, deliver that coveted La Decima.

The Italian is no stranger to success having won everything there is to win on a domestic front. As Madrid proudly announced, he is coming on the back of being named ‘French Coach of the Year’ - not quite like winning the treble at Bayern, but Perez is willing to take what he can get at this point.



During his time at Chelsea, Ancelotti had to deal with not only Roman Abramovich but also the player power that became evident during Andre Villas Boas’ ill-fated reign at the club. Needless to say, that will stand him in good stead for his time at Los Blancos given the state the club are currently in after the tempestuous season under Jose Mourinho.

After winning the Liga in 2012 and making progress in the Champions League, Real were finally looking like they could challenge Barcelona’s dominance at the top of world football and possibly win the Champions League. Of course there were the customary whisperings that a couple of Real Madrid's players were unhappy, but at the Santiago Bernabeu, what else is new?



Going into last season, more was expected of the side and their manager than ever before. Rather spectacularly and to the glee of the Spanish press, the season was an utter failure which culminated in the derby defeat to Ateltico Madrid, leaving Los Blancos trophyless.



The reign of Mourinho was not a total disaster – trophies were won, albeit not as many as Perez wouold’ve hoped for and the club have finally shaken their inferiority complex when it comes to Catalan giants Barcelona.

So what lies ahead for Ancelotti? First and foremost he must sort out the dressing room. Towards the end, Mourinho may not have had much support, but the players who believed in his school of thought were open enough about it to sacrifice their relationship with the rest of the squad.
 

Florentino Perez wants to make Gareth Bale the club's record signing.


The relationship between Alvaro Arbeloa and anit-Jose ringleader Iker Casillas was damaged after the defender called his skipper’s behaviour ‘childish’ and claimed the ‘dressing room cannot be like a nursery’ - even the Spanish National team were effected for a period.

Arbeloa now admits that his relationship with Casillas needs to be patched up and notes that whilst their personal relationship has ‘cooled’ they are able to work together professionally. Much the same can be said of Xabi Alonso and Diego Lopez, with Michael Essien already on his way back to Chelsea. 



The future of coach Ator Karanka is also under scrutiny with Mourinho offering him a place on his team at Stamford Bridge and given the total professional breakdown of relationships between the coach and half the squad, he might be wise to take it.  

Not only this but Perez and Ancelotti need to decide what to do with ‘Team Mendez’. The super agents players such as Angel Di Maria and Fabio Coentrao are thought to be up for sale this summer to weaken his power at the club. Star man Cristiano Ronaldo also has lingering questions over his future and a move to Old Trafford is not as unthinkable as it once may have seemed. 

Once Ancelotti has dealt with all the internal issues – which could take a while – he is then faced with player recruitment. The club are heavily invested in bringing self-confessed ‘anti-madridista’ Isco in and after the European U21 Championships we can’t really blame them. It will cost a hefty amount both in terms of dinero and persuasion as the player isn't the biggest Real Madrid fan judging by recent comments.

The club also need a marquee signing to rival the capture of Neymar by Barcelona and have set their sights on Gareth Bale. Bale would of course cost a world record transfer fee but as Perez has proved time and time again, money is not an objective when he has a target in mind. Perez said this week. "[Luis] Figo, [Zinedine] Zidane, Ronaldo and [David] Beckham gave us a massive boost in income. If you invest in great players, you will have more income."

Having won approximately nothing last season, you would think Ancelotti did not have much to improve on – well at a normal club - but the failure of the previous campaign will only spur Perez on to demanding even more. One of the main targets will be the Champions League – a couple of poor campaigns in Europe will see Carlo leave before the end of his three year deal. Not that we wouldn’t expect that anyway. This is Real Madrid of course.


Madrid need a marquee signing to rival the capture of Neymar by Barcelona.


The media also posed a major problem for Mourinho, yet we suspect that the inoffensive Ancelotti will find navigating the perilous Spanish press much easier. Not only this, but clause one of the Italian’s contract – play Iker at all costs – will again aid the media relationship. Dropping their national darling would not.

Above all, Ancelotti is tasked with winning trophies whilst restoring the harmony to the club – both in their dressing room and in the media. Whilst Perez may not admit it, mistakes were made by all throughout the last campaign and the president is more culpable than most – failing to back either his manager or skipper lead to disaster in all quarters. That will not be allowed to happen again and a second successive campaign of failure will not be tolerated – managerial change or not.



Ancelotti lived in the shadow of Mourinho during his time at Chelsea, yet he will find an altogether different feeling when arriving at Valdebebas. Ultra’s aside, even those who supported Mourinho knew it was time for the Portuguese man to leave. Ancelotti will be welcomed and cherished – for now – but as we all know, there are few clubs more flighty in their affections than that of Real Madrid.

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