Chelsea FC former manager Carlo Ancelotti has been linked with the job at Stamford Bridge should Antonio Conte leave according to widespread reports.
The Chelsea FC head coach Antonio Conte has responded to the media stating that the claims are bull***t, and said that he had been contacted by Ancelotti himself apologizing about the rumors linking him to the job at Stamford Bridge.
But, even if Conte does leave Stamford Bridge, Carlo Ancelotti won’t be the man who takes over.
If you look at Ancelotti’s history with the club and Abramovich, it’s clear that the Chelsea owner and the Italian did not see eye to eye. Additionally, Ancelotti had issues with the fact that the club would regularly override his decisions.
Ancelotti, who managed The Blues from 2009 to 2011, revealed in his autobiography a few years ago that he didn’t have the best relationship with Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich.
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The former Bayern Munich manager and former Blues coach stated that there was a lot of tension between him and the club in his autobiography, Quiet Leadership: Winning Hearts, Minds and Matches,.
When Chelsea were top of the Premier League following 16 wins from the first 18 games, Chelsea FC lost to Wigan 3-1. After the loss, the Russian owner went to the training ground at Cobham “demanding answers”.
"“I tried to listen and not respond impulsively, but maybe I should have had some answers ready for him and been more prepared. I should have recognized this as my first red flag. It was a new type of relationship for me with an owner—even [Silvio] Berlusconi [owner at AC Milan] had not been so demanding.”"
Following winning the Premier League and the FA Cup with Chelsea FC in 2010, Ancelotti was still sacked by Abramovich in the next season due to not doing well enough in Europe. But the belief is that Ancelotti was sacked was due to the fractured relationship between the pair.
Ancelotti revealed that he was expected to promote five youth players from the academy into the first team in the following season, which he did, but that Abramovich still had issues with the Italian despite winning their first game 6-0.
"I was asked to promote five young academy graduate players into the 25-man squad, which I did. We won the first game of the new season 6–0, but I was still summoned to Abramovich’s house that night to receive a ‘dressing down,’ as they say in England, for the performance.”"
To win 6-0 and still getting told off by the boss is quite an indictment on the bad relationship between the two. It’s like if you got your boss a new client resulting in thousands of dollars yet still getting told off.
Ancelotti was also annoyed by how the club seemed to make decisions over his head, including the fact they sacked Ray Wilkins, then Chelsea FC assistant coach, without asking him.
"“I was surprised when the club changed Wilkins. It was not discussed with me first.”"
Sounds familiar? Well current coach Antonio Conte has had similar complaints about the club deciding to sell players without asking him including selling Nathan Ake and Nemanja Matic.
Asked about the decision to sell Nathan Ake, Conte hinted that he didn’t want Ake to leave but he was powerless to affect the decisions behind the scenes.
"‘My answer is always the same. I can give my opinion to the club but then the last decision is for the club. This must be very clear."
So, It comes as a surprise that reports are heavily linking the former Blues manager with the job should Conte leave. It’s clearly a case of the media jumping to conclusions just because Ancelotti was spotted in the stands watching Chelsea play Roma in the Champions League recently.
But, here’s a guy who’s just been sacked, and doesn’t have a job just wanting to watch some football from his former club as a manager and Roma where he used to play. He loves football, he doesn’t have a job and he can afford to travel. So why not?
It’s clear that Conte’s relationship with the board and the owner is currently tense, even if you believe half of the media’s reports. But Ancelotti will not be the one to replace him.His relationship with the board and the owner was bad and vice-versa., Abramovich didn’t get along with Ancelotti.
Next: Chelsea planning for life after Conte
Conte will hope for a win this weekend as they face Bournemouth away in a must-win game for Chelsea FC and their manager. Conte cannot afford another shock defeat like the one against Crystal Palace. But even if Conte is sacked or leaves, Ancelotti won’t be the one to replace him.