Brazil announces Ancelotti deal

Alonso seems in place

Former Madrid player Xabi Alonso is widely expected to replace Ancelotti at Real Madrid after he confirmed his departure from Bayer Leverkusen.

Real Madrid reportedly wants Alonso in place in time for the Club World Cup in the United States, which starts on June 14.

Ancelotti's future at Madrid had been in question amid a mediocre season by the club's standards. The Champions League title defense ended in the quarterfinals. It has lost all four games to rival Barcelona this season, including the Copa del Rey final and the "Clasico" on Sunday that crushed Madrid's hopes of retaining the league title.

Leadership in flux

Ancelotti's signing ends a turbulent time on Brazil's bench since the departure of Tite after the 2022 World Cup quarterfinals elimination against Croatia.

Under-20 coach Ramon Menezes and Fluminense coach Fernando Diniz took charge for several matches, as Rodrigues courted Ancelotti. Menezes and Diniz fared poorly, and Ancelotti extended his deal with Madrid.

Dorival Junior was chosen in 2024 to take the team to the World Cup, but he was also fired after the same lack of success.

Al-Hilal coach Jorge Jesus, a 70-year-old Portuguese who won several titles with Brazil's Flamengo in 2019, was the favorite to take the Brazil job until Madrid was knocked out of the Champions League by Arsenal in April. Local media also reported that Neymar's father and agent had a role in stopping his son's former coach in Saudi Arabia from taking over.

Some Brazilian media pundits have expressed doubt, wondering whether Ancelotti's signing has come too late. Former Brazil striker and 1994 World Cup winner Luis Muller said the Italian's CV was great, but that doesn't mean he will have an impact.

"It is too close (to the World Cup), Brazil doesn't have a team, and Ancelotti won't have time to develop a formation like he did at his clubs," Muller said. "It is a coach who carries a lot of weight, but a team that is lightweight. He has won much more than all these Brazil players. I don't think his CV will have an impact amid our very poor form these days."

Ana Thais Matos, one of TV Globo's main pundits, approved of Ancelotti's signing, but, she added, he will have a big challenge fixing the mentality of the national team. "I don't believe in the psychological potential of this generation of players," Matos said. "It is a fragile generation, they don't have much self-criticism."

A rare appointment

Brazil will be Ancelotti's first international experience as a fulltime coach. He was an assistant to Italy coach Arrigo Sacchi at the 1994 World Cup.

As a player — a creative midfielder — Ancelotti won Serie A titles with Roma and AC Milan and two European titles with the latter. His last professional match was in 1992 against Brazil, playing for AC Milan. The match, a celebration for the host winning that season's Serie A title, was won by Brazil 1-0 thanks to a goal by Careca.

Ancelotti started his full-time coaching career in 1995 at Italy's Reggiana.

He's won titles in Italy, England, Spain, France and Germany. He's the only coach to have won five Champions League titles; two with AC Milan and three with Real Madrid.

It is highly unusual for Brazil to be coached by a foreigner.

Uruguayan Ramon Platero coached Brazil in the 1925 South American championship, the predecessor of the Copa America, for just 19 days and four matches.

Portuguese coach Jorge Gomes de Lima, known as Joreca, co-led Brazil with Brazilian Flavio Costa in two friendly victories over Uruguay in 1944. In 1965, Argentine Filpo Nunez coached Brazil for one day. Nunez was Palmeiras' coach, and Brazil officials chose the Sao Paulo-based club to play with national team shirts in a friendly against Uruguay at the opening of Mineirao Stadium in Belo Horizonte.

Ancelotti will be the second man to coach Real Madrid and Brazil. Vanderlei Luxemburgo worked with Brazil from 1998-99 and at the Spanish giant in 2005, both stints without much success.

Agencies via Xinhua