Real Madrid boss Carlo Ancelotti reveals the three things needed to win the Champions League and believes he and Napoli parted company at the right moment: ‘It was the best thing.’
The Italian tactician released an extended interview with DAZN, discussing his career as a coach and as a footballer as well as the current campaign.
When asked whether Napoli can win the Champions League this season, he replied: “It’s possible. Napoli are doing very well.
“First of all, the club made a very important step, changing players and hierarchies with new signings and motivations. Then the coach has a great experience. I consider Spalletti one of the best coaches tactically and this will make them win the title. They could even with the Champions League. All the eight teams still involved can win, the others will watch.”
Asked about the state of Italian football, Ancelotti said: “I think that Italian teams defensively are still the best. We are going through a tough period, but three Serie A clubs are now in the Champions League quarter-finals. Italian football in Europe is well-represented. Real Madrid are the only Spanish club left in the competition in the Champions League.”
Napoli sacked Ancelotti after less than two years in charge in 2019, what really happened between him and the club?
“What happens many times in many clubs. Simply, those who hired me two years earlier started losing trust. The best thing Napoli and I did in that period was to split up, without waiting.”
Ancelotti became the most successful coach in the Champions League last season when he lifted the cup with big ears for the fourth time. What does it take to win the most important European trophy for clubs?
“First of all, you have to believe in it and think you are the best. Then optimism is needed. I am optimistic this season, but I’ve always been as such. When Real Madrid get to the quarter-finals are very dangerous. For Real Madrid, this is the most important competition.”
Does he support Milan or Real Madrid more?
“I am both a Milanista and a Madridista, 100%. Those are the two clubs to which I am more connected. I played for Milan and Madrid, represent the best in football.”
How does he feel before games?
“Still the same,” he admitted.
“The feelings before a game have always been the same, there isn’t a match that makes me feel less concerned, I wrote down in a notebook what a coach feels, that sense of loneliness, negative thoughts coming in. There’s even physical discomfort, sweating increases, you try to sleep, but you can’t. You try to kill time, but you always think about negative things. The discomfort doesn’t end until the game starts.
“There’s a lot of pressure, more than in Italy, especially here in Madrid. Radios and TVs are pushing all day. How do I deal with it? Easy, I don’t listen. In the end, I am interested, but I am not concerned. However, I think patience is my most important quality, especially as a coach.
“Without patience, you could argue every day, with everyone, a player, a doctor, the president, and journalists…patience is saving my life in my world. I think it’s genetic, it’s part of the character. I grew up with quiet people, like my professors and my parents. My first coach, Lidholm, was very quiet, making me patient. It could be a limit, but I prefer it.”
Ancelotti wouldn’t expect he would have become the Real Madrid coach one day: “No! Sometimes I wake up in the morning, asking myself: ‘Where am I?'” he revealed.
He’s worked with some of the best players in the world and legends such as Cristiano Ronaldo, Kaka and Andrea Pirlo.
“I didn’t coach Francesco Totti, I miss Leo Messi, but I’ve coached many,” he noted.
“It’s been a great journey. They are not just players, they are young people, with their problems. Sometimes they speak about them sometimes you find out. There is a world behind. Those are guys from a different generation than mine, with problems different from mine at their age. This is a reason why the coach’s job is so good. You deal with many people from different nationalities.”
Are Real Madrid players lucky to have him as a coach?
“That’s for sure, I am not an army general, I don’t want to be so. I am not authoritarian, which could be a limit. Actually, I am blamed because of it when things don’t go well, but it’s not my style. Sometimes it works, but in relationships, you must be yourself.
“Vinicius? He has Brazilian technique but is very strong physically, and most of the time he makes the difference in the final minutes of games. He has room for improvement. In terms of environment, he suffers a little bit in Spain, they don’t treat him too well, but he’s very serious and he’ll be one of the best players in the world in the next ten years.
“Federico Valverde is a modern midfielder, football is changing and requires midfielders with talent but also with physical strength and that’s what he represents. He’s a box-to-box midfielder. I would have struggled in this football. But it depends on characteristics, Pirlo wasn’t box-to-box, but was pure class.
“This group has done something that nobody has ever done in football, winning five Champions League and they continue making history. These players don’t have a big ego, which is a fortune. Usually, players with a big ego suffer when there are new signings, while new players here have found a protective environment here, it’s been the key to success.”