Carlo Ancelotti admits he had to change his style and idea of football over the years and jokes about the upcoming Champions League Final against Liverpool: ‘It’s going to start 0-0, so that’s a good starting point for us.’
The Italian tactician has qualified for a Champions League Final for the fifth time in his career, more than any other coach. His Real Madrid side will face Liverpool on May 28 at Paris’ Stade De France.
“I think the final is going to start 0-0, so that’s a good starting point for us,” he told SiriusXM FC’s The Football Show, as quoted by Football Espana.
“We’re happy to be able to play the Final and of course, we’re going to play against a tough team, one of the best in Europe. But when you play the final of the Champions League, you’re going to have to fight against one of the top teams in Europe.
“We’re excited to play this game and we’re going to prepare really well. We’re going to be 100% fit and we’re going to try to play our game. That’s the target we have.
“In this kind of game, you have to play with courage and personality. We have to prepare our game in order to show our quality and Liverpool will do the same. You can’t play a game to try to avoid the quality of your opponent, you have to try your best to show your quality. And we have a lot of quality. So do Liverpool. So whoever is able to do that best is going to win.”
Ancelotti is also the only coach to have qualified for the Champions League semis in four decades and holds the record for the most victories in Europe’s elite competition along with Bob Paisley and his former assistant and player Zinedine Zidane.
How has Ancelotti changed his view on football through the years?
“I think that the methodology of training in football has changed a lot in the last 20 years,” the 62-year-old admitted.
“So I’ve had to be ready to change my style and my idea of football, because the rules have changed. It’s a completely different sport. But what hasn’t changed is my relationship with the players. That’s the same.
“The important thing is the relationships you have with other people. I’m with my players every day – actually, it’s not right to call them my players. I’m with my friends every day. Because there’s the player and then there’s the person.
“Players are people playing football. When you ask most of them who they are they’ll say that they’re a player. But no, they’re men who play football. And sometimes I tell them that I put the player on the bench, not the man. If you’re a serious professional who respects the people they work with you’ll always come out top.”
Ancelotti returned to Madrid for a second spell at the club last summer, signing a three-year deal at the Estadio Bernabeu. He has won the La Liga title this season, becoming the first-ever coach to win the title in the top five European leagues.
Real Madrid 3
Liverpool 2