Real Madrid and former Chelsea FC manager Carlo Ancelotti discussed Jose Mourinho’s tenure at Real and how he deals with the pressure of managing such a club. Ancelotti is widely regarded as one of the “nice guys” in football management. He is not abrasive at times like Mourinho or egotistical like Louis Van Gaal or some of the other managers with a bit more “personality” than him.
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The success he has experienced at nearly every club he has managed, including his two European Cups with AC Milan, give him every right to boast and flaunt his accomplishments but he often opts not to. Ancelotti is an even-keeled manager that focuses more on man management and tactics than mind games through the press and Chelsea had one of their most successful seasons under him in 2009/10.
Carlo discusses his non-confrontational style in his press conferences, his take on what happened with Jose Mourinho at Madrid, and the pressure that comes with managing one of football’s highest profile clubs:
"“I suppose this is my style. But, look, they will still kill me if we lose in Lisbon. There is a lot of pressure here, of course. You have to pay attention to this. But you should realize there are a lot of people who loved Jose here in Madrid. He made two groups. One with him and one against him. But a lot of people liked him.He won a league title with 100 points and more than 100 goals, in his second year here. But this pressure, this is football. I know this world. You win the Champions League but how long is the bonus? Three games next season? Not more. It’s why I never think too much about the success we have enjoyed. Because one day you are at the top and the next you can be at the bottom.I see Roman has changed his idea about Jose so maybe he will change his idea about me too. You just have to love this sport. You can’t be too tired to watch, or too tired to learn, because you can change your idea about something every day. Do you know how many people work here at the training ground? 50. Two teams. 25 players and 50 people, and I believe that the people have to be involved too. Everyone can share their ideas with us. They don’t have to be a soldier who simply follows orders.”"
It was a sad day when Roman Abramovich and the Chelsea brass decided that Carlo Ancelotti’s services were no longer needed at Chelsea Football Club. His genial demeanor and tremendous success had won over the fans and his dismissal lead Chelsea on a path that included such managerial mistakes as Andre Villas-Boas and Rafa Benitez. The manner in which he was dismissed also garnered sympathy for the Italian and many Chelsea supporters still support him and would be delighted to see him win another trophy. Ancelotti may never return to Chelsea but the success he had with the Blues will echo in the club’s history forever.
Read the full interview with The Daily Mail here.
Here is a wonderful Carlo Ancelotti tribute video from YouTube user and Chelsea FC video extraordinaire Feroze17:
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