'He knows as much about football now as when Real Madrid were winning Champions League trophies' - Surprise support for Carlo Ancelotti

Former Real Madrid manager Juande Ramos has offered a vote of confidence to the under-fire Carlo Ancelotti and is confident that the five-time Champions League-winning coach is the best man to lead his club out of their current crisis. Madrid are currently trailing Barcelona and Atletico Madrid in the LaLiga, while their hopes of automatic progression to the Round of 16 of the Champions League also hang by a thread.

The season began with Carlo Ancelotti guiding Real Madrid to UEFA Super Cup victory over Atalanta, but the subsequent four months have been plagued by inconsistency from a team that welcomed Kylian Mbappe after lifting the LaLiga and Champions League at the end of last season. A humiliating 4-0 loss to Barcelona in October, lackluster performances against weaker sides in the league, and defeats to Liverpool, AC Milan, and Lille in the Champions League have raised serious questions about Ancelotti's future in the Real Madrid dugout.

Ramos, however, has absolutely no doubts that the Italian is the best person to lead the Spanish heavyweights, publicly backing him to deliver the results in the second half of the season.

"I think Carlo knows as much now or more about football than he did years ago when he was winning the Champions League trophies," Ramos said at an event on Monday (h/t Mundo Deportivo). "What happens is that these are moments; football has these situations, a series of events such as injuries and bad results that have led to some very good results. But I think he is the coach who can give Real Madrid the most guarantees."

Ancelotti signed a renewal with Real Madrid last year amid strong speculation that he would become Brazil's next coach. He remains tied to Los Blancos until 2026, but this should likely be his final season in his second stint in the Spanish capital if he fails to lead the Merengues to any major silverware at the end of the season.