Carlo Ancelotti requested Real Madrid to sign Jude Bellingham's England teammate in January but the club refused

Carlo Ancelotti reportedly saw a request to sign Jude Bellingham’s England teammate rejected by Real Madrid in January.

Ancelotti, 65, has won 15 trophies across two spells at Real Madrid but will leave the club at the end of the 2024/25 campaign.

Former Real Madrid, Bayern Munich and Liverpool midfielder turned coach Xabi Alonso has been heavily linked with the soon-to-be vacant head coach’s role after he announced that he will leave Bayer Leverkusen at the end of the season.

And Ancelotti’s last season as Madrid boss will likely end without silverware, with Barcelona’s 4-3 El Clasico win putting Hansi Flick’s side seven points ahead of Los Blancos with just three La Liga fixtures remaining.

Despite reports of ‘tension’ between Ancelotti and the Madrid board – namely club president Florentino Perez – the Italian was keen to stress that there was “no conflict” within the club in late April.

"Whoever says that there is a conflict is false,” Ancelotti said. “The president shows more affection in these moments than when we win.”

“The reality is that in this world, everything is questioned," he added. "Questioning a club that has won almost 30 titles in the last decade seems misleading to me.”

However, in a column for BBC Sport, Spanish journalist Guillem Balague reports that “behind closed doors, disagreements surfaced over physical preparation and discipline and Perez, always deeply involved, became more vocal in his frustration.

“From the directors' box came disdainful comments, on the lack of defensive work by the main stars, despite meetings between the manager and them to turn things around, and Ancelotti's management of emerging talents".

Balague also claims Ancelotti asked for Bellingham’s England teammate, right-back Kyle Walker, in January, as Dani Carvajal and Eder Militao were sidelined with long-term injuries.

Carlo Ancelotti wanted to sign Kyle Walker (Credit:Getty)

But Ancelotti’s request was reportedly rejected by the club’s hierarchy, and Walker joined AC Milan on loan from Manchester City.

The 65-year-old is supposedly in discussions with the CBF (Brazil Football Confederation), with meetings held in London and Madrid in recent weeks, over the vacant head coach position.

As for Carlo’s assistant and son Davide, he could pursue a head coach’s role elsewhere, having served as his father’s right-hand man at PSG, Bayern, Napoli, Everton and Real.