Carlo Ancelotti snubbed Zinedine Zidane when naming the best player he’s managed.
Ancelotti has managed a spate of the world’s greatest players throughout his management career, having spent time in charge of Juventus, AC Milan, Chelsea, Real Madrid among others.
When quizzed on the best players he has managed in his career, the Brazil boss picked Ronaldo Nazario, Cristiano Ronaldo, Kaka, Toni Kroos, Luka Modric, Vinicius Jr and Didier Drogba.
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While that is, of course, a star-studded selection, it is as notable for its exclusions, with the likes of Frank Lampard, Paolo Maldini and Zinedine Zidane failing to make the cut.
Of course, Ancelotti has been full of praise for Zidane in another interview, insisting that his time managing the Frenchman at Juventus changed his “idea about football”.
"With Zidane, I tried to change my idea about the system,” Ancelotti told Sky Sports in 2020. “Zidane is the first player who gave me the possibility to change the system and play in a different way.
“So when I had Zidane, in the first year at Juventus, I played with a system of 3-4-1-2, having [Alessandro] Del Piero and [Filippo] Inzaghi up front and Zidane a little bit behind. The second year, I played with a back four but keeping two strikers in front and one No10 like Zidane.
"Zidane changed my idea about football, I was so focused before Juventus on 4-4-2 and after with Zidane, I changed, I wanted to put him in the best position for him to let him be more comfortable on the pitch.”
Zidane is widely considered to be among the greatest players in football history, having fired France to World Cup glory and won the Ballon d’Or in 1998, before moving to Real Madrid, where he netted a sumptuous volley to win the 2002 Champions League with Los Blancos.
Others players Ancelotti forgot to mention include Zlatan Ibrahimovic, who starred under the Italian at Paris Saint-Germain, as well the 2022 Ballon d’Or winner Karim Benzema.
Topics: Carlo Ancelotti, Zinedine Zidane, Football, Real Madrid
Chris Byfield