The legendary Manchester United manager spoke of his admiration for former Chelsea FC and Real Madrid manager Carlo Ancelotti, urging his ‘friend’ to return to the game sooner rather than later
Sir Alex Ferguson was involved in David Beckham’s charity match at Old Trafford on Saturday, organised by the former Manchester United no. 7 to mark his 10th anniversary as an ambassador for the United Nations’ children’s charity UNICEF.
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The Scotsman was manager of the Great Britain side, who faced a Rest of the World XI in the ‘Match for Children’, managed by Italian Carlo Ancelotti. Ferguson spoke after the event about the respect and admiration he had for Ancelotti, whom he rates as ‘one of the best managers in the world’.
Ferguson urges Ancelotti to return to action
The former Chelsea FC coach has been on a well-deserved break after being sacked by Real Madrid at the end of the 2014-2015 season, but has recently announced his willingness to return to club management. Sir Alex Ferguson locked horns with the Italian in David Beckham’s charity event as the opposition manager, and had some words of praise for Ancelotti after the game.
Ferguson is quoted by Spanish daily AS as saying: “Ancelotti is one of the best managers in the world and I hope he is back in the game soon. Carlo is a great friend of mine and one of the great masterminds of the game. Hea s a great guy and someone with his capability shouldna t be away from football for too long.”
The Scotsman also spoke of his admiration for what Ancelotti has achieved in the game, both as a player and a manager, particularly in the UEFA Champions League. “He won it as a player and then as a coach with AC Milan. Later, he went on to win it again with Real Madrid. I dona t think anyone else could do something like that and thata s why he is on a pedestal in the game.”
Ancelotti could well return to the Premier League
There is no doubt that the Italian will be a man in demand if a position were to open up at one of the top European clubs. It would be safe to rule out an immediate return to La Liga, as also a return to Ligue 1, where Paris Saint-Germain are flourishing under Laurent Blanc.
That leaves the Bundesliga, the Serie A and the English Premier League. Bayern Munich are realistically the only club that are appropriately ‘big’ enough for Ancelotti to manage, but it seems as though they will try their best to keep Pep Guardiola beyond this season.
A return to the Serie A is a bigger possibility, with AC Milan and Juventus both off to slow starts under SiniA?a Mihajlovi and Massimiliano Allegri respectively. However, Ancelotti’s recent comments about the Premier League are a clear indication that that would be his preferred destination.
Chelsea FC, Manchester City, and possibly even Manchester United could all be looking for a new manager in the near future, and the Italian will probably be open to accepting any of those positions.
