Real Madrid made it official on Friday, confirming that coaching legend Carlo Ancelotti will part ways with the club following its final Spanish league game this weekend.
Despite having another year left on his contract, Ancelotti had been linked to the Brazilian national team for some time. Real Madrid had yet to comment publicly on the matter until this week.
“I’m an emotional guy, just like my father and grandfather were. I have no problem in shedding a tear, I won’t hide that,” Ancelotti told reporters. “It’s going to be a special day and I’ll be sharing it with Modric, who has been a wonderful support for me in this period. He’s a fantastic player and a legend. I think it’s beautiful to say goodbye alongside him.”
“I’m honoured to have had the chance to coach this club and become part of its history…The pride comes from having coached this club, winning titles and going down in history. That was the goal when I started here back in 2013. Having been able to do that, the only way to say goodbye was with the same affection I have for the club and the affection they have always shown me.”
The 65 year old helped guide Real Madrid to 3 Champions League titles, 3 Club World Cups, two Spanish league championships, a pair of Copa del Reys,, two Spanish Super Cups, and 3x UEFA Super Cups over the course of a 350 game career.
“Carlo Ancelotti will forever be part of the great madridista family,” Madrid club president Florentino Pérez said via a statement. “We feel incredibly honored to have had the chance to enjoy a coach who has helped us achieve so much success, but who has also embodied our club’s values in such exemplary fashion.”
While Ancelotti’s successor has yet to be publicly confirmed, it’s been widely speculated that former Bayer Leverkusen manager Xabi Alonso could assume the role next season.
The Italian manager will see his final game with the Spanish giants take place Saturday against Real Sociedad at the Santiago Bernabeu Stadium. Regardless of the outcome, Los Blancos will finish 2nd in the league with Barcelona having already clinched La Liga title.
Photo: Светлана Бекетова. This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license.