Last Saturday, Carlo Ancelotti became world club champion for the second time in his career after leading defending European champions Real Madrid to their first FIFA Club World Cup title courtesy of a 2-0 victory over South American champions San Lorenzo, in Morocco.
In so doing, Real Madrid have equalled Milan’s record of four CWC and Intercontinental Cup triumphs.
In Ancelotti’s own words this was “a fitting end to an unforgettable year”, which has seen Los Merengues lift four trophies – Champions League, Copa del Rey and the European Super Cup apart from being crowned Club World Cup champions – in a calendar year.
This feat was a first for Real in their glittering 112-year club history.
Also, by beating San Lorenzo at the Marrakech Stadium, Real Madrid stretched their remarkable winning sequence to 22 games in all competitions.
This streak is a club record and seven victories better off than Miguel Munoz’s 1960/61 milestone that was matched by Jose Mourinho in season 2011/12 – the last time Real were crowned Spanish champions.
Real Madrid’s flawless run becomes even more significant when taking into consideration that they had started the season on the wrong foot following two defeats (vs Real Sociedad 2-4 and Atletico Madrid 1-2) in their first four outings. Those upsets saw Real slipping behind eternal rivals Barcelona in the title race.
However, as things stand at present, Ancelotti’s revitalised side are one point clear of Barcelona and with a game in hand.
Thus, if Real Madrid end a three-year La Liga title drought next May, Ancelotti will become the first coach to win four of the ‘Big Five’ European leagues after having triumphed in the 2003/04 Serie A with Milan, in the 2009/10 English Premier League with Chelsea and in the 2012/13 Ligue 1 with Paris SG.
Ancelotti has transformed Real Madrid from a bunch of great individuals into a formidable outfit, capable of winning against any opposition
By helping Real win La Decima (10th European Cup) at Benfica’s Stadium of Light this year, Ancelotti also joined a select group of four other coaches who have won a European Cup with two different clubs.
Moreover, last May’s success over Atletico Madrid in the first showpiece between clubs from the same city in the 59-year history of the European Cup, enabled the 55-year-old Ancelotti to emulate Bob Paisley’s achievement of being crowned continental champion three times (with Liverpool in 1977, 1978 and 1981).
Also, Ancelotti is one of only six men to have lifted the coveted European Cup both as a player and coach.
There is little doubt that Ancelotti, the farmer’s son from Emilia-Romagna, has already done better than Italian compatriots Arrigo Sacchi, Fabio Capello and Marcello Lippi.
Unlike his mentor Sacchi, for instance, Ancelotti has remained humble and committed to his work and therefore has the potential to win more trophies at club level before he shifts focus on national team football.
In Sacchi’s own words, Ancelotti has transformed Real Madrid from a bunch of great individuals into a formidable outfit, capable of winning against any opposition.
Sacchi, who led Milan to back-to-back European Cup triumphs in 1989 and 1990, went as far as saying that “Real Madrid had great players, but they weren’t a great team – now their play is not only attractive but also effective”.
Real are the hot favourites to claim their 33rd La Liga title and become the first team to win back-to-back Champions League editions since that Milan side coached by Sacchi.
Incidentally, Ancelotti was a mainstay in the Milan sides that overcame Steaua Bucharest (4-0) in the 1989 final in Barcelona and Benfica (1-0) in the 1990 final in Vienna.
Real Madrid chief Florentino Perez is reportedly keen to extend Ancelotti’s current contract which expires in June 2016.
This is no mean feat for Ancelotti considering the Spanish giants’ short fuse with coaches.
In the past, Capello led Real to the 2006/07 La Liga triumph but was still sacked due to his defensive style of playing.
Real Madrid fans are very demanding in that they want to win trophies and play dazzling football. Many top-rated coaches including Capello, Mourinho, Manuel Pellegrini, Bernd Schuster, Carlos Queiroz and Vanderlei Luxemburgo, have all failed in their mission.
Ancelotti, on the other hand, has been shrewd enough to bring an unprecedented sense of unity in a dressing-room full of prima donnas, transforming superb individual players into a powerful unit with a perfect balance between attacking football and sound defending.
In many aspects, Ancelotti’s low-profile approach resembles that of Spain national team coach Vicente Del Bosque, who had taken Real Madrid to dizzy heights during his four-year stint at the Bernabeu (1999-2003).
Eleven years ago, Perez sacked Del Bosque just after helping Real lift their 29th La Liga title, a decision he was later to regret.
This time, Perez has already made it public that he wants Ancelotti to extend his contract and keep him for the long term.
Indeed, in the former Azzurri, Roma and Milan anchor-man, the Real Madrid supremo sees a guarantee that his glorious club will remain at the top… possibly at the very top of the world of football.
Factfile...
Teams managed by Carlo Ancelotti
1995-1996: Reggiana
1996-1998: Parma
1999-2001: Juventus
2001-2009: Milan
2009-2011: Chelsea
2011-2013: Paris Saint-Germain
2013-: Real Madrid
Honours won
Juventus
Intertoto Cup: 1999
Milan
Champions League (two times): 2002-03, 2006-07.
UEFA Super Cup (two times): 2003, 2007.
FIFA Club World Cup: 2007.
Serie A: 2003-04.
Coppa Italia: 2002-03.
Supercoppa Italiana: 2004.
Chelsea
Premier League: 2009-10.
FA Cup: 2009-10.
Community Shield: 2009.
Paris Saint-Germain
Ligue 1: 2012-13.
Real Madrid
Champions League: 2013-14.
UEFA Super Cup: 2014.
Copa del Rey: 2013-14.
FIFA Club World Cup: 2014.