Real Madrid will have one more season under Carlo Ancelotti, but after the announcement that Italian coach will take over the Brazilian national team from 2024speculation has already begun about the future commander of the merengue team.
Ancelotti is set to make his debut for Brazil in next year’s Copa America (June 20-July 14) in the United States as soon as his contract with the Spanish club expires, a senior CBF source who requested anonymity told AFP.
About that, Fernando Diniz will be the interim coach in the national teamparallel to his work at Fluminense.
“The game proposal (of Diniz) is almost similar to that of the coach who will take over from the Copa América onwards, Ancelotti”, said the president of the CBF, Ednaldo Rodrigues, in declarations published by the portals UOL and ge.
The announcement seems to be the end of a long soap opera, which forced Ancelotti to answer questions about Brazilian interest in several press conferences.
Contract with Real Madrid
“The reality is that the Brazilian team wants me, this delights me and makes me very excited. Then, you have to respect the contract, a contract that I want to fulfill”, said the Italian coach at the end of April.
“The club is calm and I think we will be here next season and we will respect the contract,” added Ancelotti, whose contract with the Spanish team ends in June 2024.
“At Real Madrid, they were always aware of the desire of the CBF to have Ancelotti and of the motivation that represented for the coach to manage the five-time champion team”, wrote this Wednesday (5) the editor of the newspaper Marca, José Félix Díaz.
“They know there were talks and they admit it,” added Díaz, explaining that nothing has changed for the madridistas, who trust the Italian.
“Once again it will be football that will determine what happens on the bench at Real Madrid”, but now the board “will have a certain amount of freedom when it comes to looking for a possible replacement for Ancelotti if things do not work out as desired”, he added.
For now, without a statement from Ancelotti and Real Madrid, everything seems to continue as planned at the club, which returns to training on July 10 for the pre-season, which will include several friendlies in the United States.
Possible succession candidates
After a season that ended only with the conquest of the King’s Cup, the merengue team is looking for more titles next year, to then think about a new coach.
“The unofficial announcement that Ancelotti is going to Brazil opens up a range of options for Real Madrid’s bench,” wrote the Catalan newspaper Mundo Deportivo this Wednesday.
However, “Madrid has many months ahead of them to evaluate possible candidates and filter the search for the right name”, added the publication.
Among some names speculated since last season is that of Xabi Alonso, current coach of Bayer Leverkusen, who led the team from the relegation zone to seventh place in the German Championship.
Another Meringue legend, Raúl González, who runs Real Madrid Castilla, could also be an option, according to the Spanish press.
If the scenario materializes, Raúl would follow in the footsteps of other coaches, such as Vicente del Bosque and Zinedine Zidane, who left the club’s B team for the main team. The Frenchman, who won three consecutive Champions Leagues with Real Madrid, is free on the market.
“If he (Zidane) is willing to return, it will be an option very well evaluated by the top of the club”, analyzed Mundo Deportivo.
For now, the fate of Real Madrid remains in the hands of Carlo Ancelotti.
Source: Gazetaesportiva
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