It feels almost inevitable that this season will be Carlo Ancelotti’s last as head coach of Real Madrid. The Italian’s contract expires in the summer, and he has been heavily linked with taking over as manager of the Brazil national team for such of 2023.
Ancelotti’s second spell in charge has been very successful, with six trophies across the last two seasons. He will hope to accumulate more during 2023-24 too, so that he can end his time at Real Madrid on a high (providing it is his final season).
If Ancelotti does go, the big question will be about who replaces him. He will leave very big shoes to fill, and Florentino Perez will have a big decision coming his way over the next few months.
The expectation is that Real Madrid will go for a familiar face. Xabi Alonso appears to be the big favourite, having had a very successful time at Bundesliga side Bayer Leverkusen since taking the reins there at the back end of 2022. Raul Gonzalez and Alvaro Arbeloa, head coaches of Real Madrid’s B and U19 sides respectively, could also be in the mix.
Alternatively, Real Madrid go look outside of the box, and they have been linked with a move for Brighton and Hove Albion manager Robert De Zerbi. The Italian has been a revelation since taking over, and led the Seagulls to European qualification for the first time in their history last season.
According to Fichajes, it would cost €10m in compensation for Real Madrid to get De Zerbi out of his Brighton contract, an amount that Perez would have no problems whatsoever in paying out, should he decide that the Italian is the man for Los Blancos.
De Zerbi to Real Madrid could be a very exciting appointment. His 4-2-3-1 system would be a very good fit for the current squad, perhaps even more so that the 4-4-2 diamond set-up that has been so successful for Ancelotti so far this season.
De Zerbi plays fast, exciting and attacking football that would be very endearing to the Real Madrid faithful, and the players would surely take to it too. In this sense, it could be a very shrewd pick-up, providing it is actually a possibility for Perez.
It remains to be seen whether that is actually the case. It is much more likely that Real Madrid go for Alonso in the situation that Ancelotti leaves, and he would certainly not be a bad appointment either.
