da betsul： The Italian coach had the chance to leave for international management, but by staying in Spain, he has the chance to build his next great team

da blaze casino： Six months ago, everything was in place for Carlo Ancelotti to leave Real Madrid in the summer of 2024. The only manager to win each of Europe's 'Big Five' leagues and the owner of four Champions League winner's medals was, at 64, seemingly coming to the end at Santiago Bernabeu. He had just a year left on his contract in the Spanish capital, and the president of the Brazilian Football Confederation (CBF), Ednaldo Rodrigues, was already insisting that the legendary Italian would take charge of the Selecao, beginning with the upcoming Copa America.

Madrid, it seemed, were on the downturn. Karim Benzema had left suddenly for Saudi Arabia, Kylian Mbappe was engaged in a battle with Paris Saint-Germain over his future, and both Toni Kroos and Luka Modric were edging towards the end of their illustrious careers. What remained was a cluster of unbelievably talented yet, at times, unrefined 20-24 year olds. Ancelotti would have been forgiven for leaving the rebuild to someone else.

But in football, nothing every truly goes to plan. In as early as August, Ancelotti reaffirmed his commitment to the Madrid job, and asserted that he would wait "until the last day" for the club to offer him an extension. Meanwhile, in the background, he went to work, designing a system to get the best out of a changing squad.

By the time December rolled around, he had agreed to a new three-year contract, and now Los Blancos are on a run during which they haven't lost since September. They won their first silverware of the season by beating their arch-rivals Barcelona in the Spanish Supercopa, and with the Champions League knockout stage soon to start, they simply cannot be counted out to challenge for a 15th European Cup, either.

Instead of bolting, Ancelotti has reinvented Madrid, and will now oversee the changing of the guard and the start of a potentially glorious new era at the Bernabeu. On current evidence, there is no one better for the job.

GettyBrazil's interest

It was in March 2023 that Brazil's interest in hiring Ancelotti first emerged. The Selecao's enquiry was sincere and it made a lot of sense. They hadn't been able to tie down a replacement for Tite despite knowing he would be departing ahead of the 2022 World Cup, and their desire to bring in Ancelotti only grew throughout last year after a string of poor results – including their first-ever World Cup qualifying loss on home soil.

The former Chelsea boss had promised that the Madrid job would be his last in club football, and had shown vague interest in international management before. He made sense from a footballing perspective, too, as Ancelotti has existing relationships with a number of Brazil's senior players, and has made a career from excellent man-management as much as tactical nous. Add to that that Brazil were always going to be judged by their performances in tournament football — something Ancelotti is nothing short of a genius at — and the Selecao had, in theory, found the right man.

For the man himself, it seemed the logical next step. Ancelotti has completed club football, winning everything there is to win. Having reinvigorated Real Madrid, there were truly no more worlds for him to conquer outside of testing himself on the international scene. Brazil would have provided the perfect swansong.

AdvertisementGettyMadrid's tricky summer

Ancelotti's job was supposed to be made easier this summer by the presumptive arrival of Mbappe. Even when Benzema suddenly departed for the Saudi Pro League, it was widely assumed that his place in the forward line would be taken by his fellow Frenchman. One elite striker out, an even better one in.

But it didn't work that way as Mbappe's future turned into the saga of the transfer window. Madrid, still hurting after Mbappe's infamous U-turn in 2022, refused to enter negotiations despite the France captain's decision not to extend his contract at Parc des Princes, leaving Mbappe to reject other potential suitors before reconciling with the French champions.

What was perhaps even more surprising, though, was that Madrid didn't move for any other elite attackers in the transfer market. Without another recognised No.9 in their squad following Benzema's departure, the Blancos clearly had a need up front, but opted against bidding for the likes of Victor Osimhen or Randal Kolo Muani. Instead they opted to bring Spanish veteran Joselu in on loan from recently-relegated Espanyol.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, reports claiming that Ancelotti was ready to play out the final year of his contract before walking away intensified. It was felt that he had been let down in the transfer market, and that after missing out on the Liga title to Barcelona the previous campaign, the time had come for him to move on and allow someone new to oversee the club's impending transition years.

Getty ImagesTactical conundrum

Those reports of Ancelotti potentially being disinterested were wide of the mark, however. Instead, he went into the season regarding it as a challenge, seeing Madrid's rather imbalanced squad as a puzzle that only he could complete.

His preferred 4-3-3 formation would be near impossible to deploy from an attacking perspective without a recognised No.9. Furthermore, he had something of a logjam in midfield, with new arrival Jude Bellingham joining Modric, Kroos, Federico Valverde, Aurelien Tchouameni and Eduardo Camavingaon a list of options where every player would walk into any other top-tier European side.

He came up with what seemed a simple solution: Play more midfielders. But it came with a twist. Bellingham was deployed higher up the pitch, playing behind two wingers – Vinicius Jr and Rodrygo – who had been converted into split-strikers. Nominally, Madrid would play a 4-4-2 diamond shape, but in practice, it has become a morphing, fluid thing. They defend in a more traditional 4-4-2, while against low blocks, it looks more like a 4-2-2-2 with a box midfield.

And it wasn't just Bellingham and the Brazilian forwards who were forced to adapt. Valverde, who had spent his last two seasons as a right-winger, was deployed in something resembling a double pivot, charged with doing a lot of clean up work and making driving runs from deep.

What looked a talented but imbalanced squad has soon morphed into an imposing, almost unstoppable unit with Ballon d'Or frontrunner Bellingham as its spearhead. Ancelotti has long been hailed for being a coach who maintains a strong dressing-room culture, but there is no doubt that his tactical brilliance is what has led Madrid to this point in their season.

GettyDefensive injury issues nullified

That's not to say that everything has been smooth sailing for Madrid this season. Until 2023-24, the Blancos had remained relatively injury-free during Ancelotti's tenure. Benzema may have struggled with various knocks during his final season at the club, but the manager had always benefitted from valuable depth down the spine of his team. Centre-back and goalkeeper, in particular, were areas of strength.

That changed within the space of six days in August. Thibaut Courtois went down first, rupturing his ACL in training while undergoing a fairly routine drill on the eve of the campaign. Eder Militao was next, popping his knee after an awkward slide in Los Blancos' season opener away at Athletic Club. The key duo were immediately ruled out for the campaign.

Madrid, of course, had some depth in defence, with Antonio Rudiger and David Alaba able to step in, at least until the latter suffered his own serious knee injury in December. But Courtois was, effectively, irreplaceable. Either the top goalkeeper in the world or very close to it, his efforts between the sticks had been vital in countless wins over the past two seasons.

A replacement arrived in the shape of Kepa Arrizabalaga, who came in on loan Chelsea, but the arrival of the oft-maligned Spaniard was a puzzling one, especially given his inconsistencies during his time at Stamford Bridge. And while there have been some issues to iron out, things could barely have gone better given the issues Madrid have faced at the back.

Kepa and Andriy Lunin have kept mistakes to a minimum as they battle for the No.1 jersey, while Rudiger in particular has stepped up at the heart of the backline. Their efforts have meant that Madrid have conceded just 11 goals in 19 La Liga games, giving them the second-best defensive record of any team in Europe's 'Big Five' leagues. Potential problem nullified.