What We're Reading
Perez: Ancelotti Would Have Kept Job Regardless of UCL Victory
- ESPN FC, Tuesday, May 27, 2014 12:45 PM
Real Madrid President Florentino Perez has strenuously denied that coach Carlo Ancelotti might have been sacked if their team had not come back to win last Saturday's UEFA Champions League final, 4-1, against Atletico Madrid in extra time. In an interview with “Partido de las 12”, Perez claims that contrary to reports prior to the game, Ancelotti was going to keep his job regardless of the outcome.
"[Ancelotti] was never out -- not him nor me," Perez said. "The season was good. To win is better and can strengthen difficult situations, but that was not the case. We have a project, we are going to keep improving everything but we need time and calm to do that."
Perez added that Ancelotti's calm but strong personality was ideal for being Madrid coach. "[Ancelotti] is a very normal person but very serious," he said. "When he came into the dressing room and embraced me; I saw that this is a great family. He has driven everything in a calm way and that is important. There are days when things are not right after a row; he does not have that, he fixes things. He makes the group into a big family. I would have brought him here before."
Meanwhile, Ancelotti, who has now won three European Cups as a coach, noted that these records would count for nothing next season. "Records are certainly nice, but the reality is different. It's not like any statistics like this can guarantee you anything in the future,” he said. "When next season starts, if we lose two games, I'm already an idiot. That's why I'm not getting carried away."
