Brazil will reportedly turn to former Real Madrid manager Jose Mourinho if Carlo Ancelotti stays at the Santiago Bernabeu.
According to The Athletic’s Mario Cortegana, Mourinho features on the shortlist of alternatives to Ancelotti with the latter their first-choice option. The latter recently stated that he was to remain with Los Blancos for another year.
Brazil are searching for a replacement for Tite, who departed the national team after their quarterfinal exit at the 2022 FIFA World Cup. Ancelotti has been heavily linked with the managerial vacancy but has seemingly ruled out leaving Real Madrid before 2025. He said:
“I’m sure I will be here as Real Madrid coach next season, we’ll respect the contract.”
Ancelotti won a UEFA Champions League and La Liga double last season but has experienced a topsy-turvy 2022-23 campaign. Madrid are in the Copa del Rey final and face Osasuna on May 6. They also have one foot in the Champions League semifinals after beating Chelsea 2-0 in the first leg of their quarterfinal. They head to Stamford Bridge for the second leg tomorrow (April 18). However, Real Madrid have struggled domestically and currently trail league leaders Barcelona by 11 points with nine games remaining.
Meanwhile, Mourinho’s future with AS Roma is uncertain as he has hinted at issues over the club’s financial backing. He recently claimed that contracts aren’t the most important thing in football and has been linked with the Chelsea job.
The Portuguese coach previously coached Madrid from 2010 to 2013, winning the La Liga title and the Copa del Rey once. He has also won titles in England, Italy and Portugal. However, he is yet to dip his toe into international management.
Real Madrid’s Ancelotti reacts to his side’s 2-0 win over Cadiz
Real Madrid look likely to have surrendered the La Liga title to Barca as they have a massive task to try and cut the 11-point gap on the Blaugrana. However, they impressed in a 2-0 win over Cadiz on Saturday (April 15).
Nacho Fernandez and Marco Asensio were on the scoresheet as they bounced back from a disappointing 3-2 defeat to Villarreal in the league on April 8. Ancelotti was happy with the performance from his players at the Nueva Mirandilla Stadium. He told Real Madrid’s official website:
“I’m pleased with the way the team played. It was a good performance at an important moment in the season.”
Los Merengues will next face Chelsea in the second leg of their Champions League quarterfinal on Tuesday. The Italian continued by claiming that he now has to make a decision over his lineup for the game following displays from certain players:
“These games create more doubts for me for Tuesday because a lot of players have played well. Tchouameni, Asensio, Ceballos, Karim as always. We have doubts but also the peace of mind of having a lot of options on the bench.”
Source: SportsKeeda
