Carlo Ancelotti “is not really involved” with tactics at Real Madrid says La Liga insider

Real Madrid manager Carlo Ancelotti he was often downplayed as a mere man manager compared to some of his more neurotic peers. However, insider and journalist Guillem Balague has claimed that he does very little coaching in terms of tactics for Los Blancos.

Balague was in fact to praise Ancelotti, calling his work this season “on another level” and expressing his admiration. However, he revealed how Ancelotti works during the week, speaking to the Euro League Podcast.

“I know for a fact that he is not really involved that much (with tactics). Davide (Ancelotti, his assistant manager) does a lot of work during the week. And what Ancelotti says to Davide is “Saturday, Rodrygo, Bellingham and Vinicius up front”. Or 'Kroos, Valverde, two in the middle', then Davide goes 'OK', and puts everything together. And every decision he made, and the XI is Carlo, was exceptional.

Certainly Davide Ancelotti is highly respected at Valdebebas and there have been suggestions in the past that he was the brains behind some of their strategy in recent seasons. Once his father retires, he will pursue a career on his own in management.

However, this is not a method of removing credit to Carlo Ancelotti. Most successful eras involve a strong coaching staff behind a manager, as was illustrated with Sir Alex Ferguson, Tito Vilanova under Pep Guardiola and Henk ten Cate under Frank Rijkaard. Assistants don't always make the best managers in their own right, but having the ability to discover what the coaching staff needs, and having a different angle from the manager, often makes their input essential.