Why Carlo Ancelotti still has a lot to prove ahead of Real Madrid's Champions League semi-final
Carlo Ancelotti hasn’t done much wrong since taking charge of Real Madrid last summer. The Italian manager has greatly improved the squad within a short time and Vinicius Junior’s impressive form is a case in point.
Even better, he is on the verge of leading the Blancos to the La Liga title after opening up a whopping 15-point gap over second-placed Barcelona.
But despite all the aforementioned arguments, there are some who believe Ancelotti is not suited for Real Madrid and must be shown the exit door at the end of the season.
While that is possible, the 62-year-old will certainly be staying put if he manages to guide Real Madrid to the Champions League. To do that, though, the Blancos have to take care of Manchester City first.
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Real Madrid not favourites
Madrid and Manchester City had to struggle in their respective quarter-final ties before advancing to the last four and what that means is that both teams are beatable.
However, the Blancos will not start as favourites, especially after how they played against Chelsea in the previous round. Ancelotti’s side have had a very tricky route to the semi-finals and were rarely convincing over two legs.
Against PSG, they were poor at the Parc des Princes but managed to turn things around at the Bernabeu. The Blancos were again superb at Stamford Bridge against Chelsea but shaky at home against the Blues.
Such hot and cold performances won’t cut it against Manchester City and should Madrid play badly at the Etihad, Pep Guardiola’s side are certainly ruthless enough and well capable of ending the tie with a huge scoreline in the first leg.
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Ancelotti’s chance to win over critics
Not every Madrid fan is enthused by Ancelotti’s style of play. While the team is winning, the Blancos faithful want to see expansive football.
The Italian manager was also not helped by the 4-0 thrashing at the hands of Barcelona in March, but he has the perfect opportunity to win over his critics by qualifying ahead of Manchester City.
"There are two teams in the semi-finals that nobody believed would get here, Real Madrid and Villarreal," Ancelotti said in his pre-match press conference, as quoted by Marca.
"I remember what was said at the time, the press and public opinion. We got here and we're very happy, Real Madrid will always compete."
"If you don't have a compact team then you're going to suffer. Tomorrow the defensive aspect will be an important part of the match, there are times when Manchester City will have the ball. It's very simple, if they have it you can't just watch them, you have to defend and try to win it back, be it with high, medium or low pressure."
Madrid looked destined to win La Liga but it’ll take more to consider their season a success. That effectively means exiting the Champions League won’t be welcome news and could further raise questions about Ancelotti’s future.