Carlo Ancelotti rejecting Brazil to lead Real Madrid's new era can set Los Blancos up for unprecedented success

It was in March 2023 that Brazil's interest in hiring Ancelotti first emerged. The Selecao's enquiry was sincere and it made a lot of sense. They hadn't been able to tie down a replacement for Tite despite knowing he would be departing ahead of the 2022 World Cup, and their desire to bring in Ancelotti only grew throughout last year after a string of poor results - including their first-ever World Cup qualifying loss on home soil.

The former Chelsea boss had promised that the Madrid job would be his last in club football, and had shown vague interest in international management before. He made sense from a footballing perspective, too, as Ancelotti has existing relationships with a number of Brazil's senior players, and has made a career from excellent man-management as much as tactical nous. Add to that that Brazil were always going to be judged by their performances in tournament football — something Ancelotti is nothing short of a genius at — and the Selecao had, in theory, found the right man.

For the man himself, it seemed the logical next step. Ancelotti has completed club football, winning everything there is to win. Having reinvigorated Real Madrid, there were truly no more worlds for him to conquer outside of testing himself on the international scene. Brazil would have provided the perfect swansong.

Ancelotti's job was supposed to be made easier this summer by the presumptive arrival of Mbappe. Even when Benzema suddenly departed for the Saudi Pro League, it was widely assumed that his place in the forward line would be taken by his fellow Frenchman. One elite striker out, an even better one in.

But it didn't work that way as Mbappe's future turned into the saga of the transfer window. Madrid, still hurting after Mbappe's infamous U-turn in 2022, refused to enter negotiations despite the France captain's decision not to extend his contract at Parc des Princes, leaving Mbappe to reject other potential suitors before reconciling with the French champions.

What was perhaps even more surprising, though, was that Madrid didn't move for any other elite attackers in the transfer market. Without another recognised No.9 in their squad following Benzema's departure, the Blancos clearly had a need up front, but opted against bidding for the likes of Victor Osimhen or Randal Kolo Muani. Instead they opted to bring Spanish veteran Joselu in on loan from recently-relegated Espanyol.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, reports claiming that Ancelotti was ready to play out the final year of his contract before walking away intensified. It was felt that he had been let down in the transfer market, and that after missing out on the Liga title to Barcelona the previous campaign, the time had come for him to move on and allow someone new to oversee the club's impending transition years.

Those reports of Ancelotti potentially being disinterested were wide of the mark, however. Instead, he went into the season regarding it as a challenge, seeing Madrid's rather imbalanced squad as a puzzle that only he could complete.

His preferred 4-3-3 formation would be near impossible to deploy from an attacking perspective without a recognised No.9. Furthermore, he had something of a logjam in midfield, with new arrival Jude Bellingham joining Modric, Kroos, Federico Valverde, Aurelien Tchouameni and Eduardo Camavingaon a list of options where every player would walk into any other top-tier European side.

He came up with what seemed a simple solution: Play more midfielders. But it came with a twist. Bellingham was deployed higher up the pitch, playing behind two wingers - Vinicius Jr and Rodrygo - who had been converted into split-strikers. Nominally, Madrid would play a 4-4-2 diamond shape, but in practice, it has become a morphing, fluid thing. They defend in a more traditional 4-4-2, while against low blocks, it looks more like a 4-2-2-2 with a box midfield.

And it wasn't just Bellingham and the Brazilian forwards who were forced to adapt. Valverde, who had spent his last two seasons as a right-winger, was deployed in something resembling a double pivot, charged with doing a lot of clean up work and making driving runs from deep.

What looked a talented but imbalanced squad has soon morphed into an imposing, almost unstoppable unit with Ballon d'Or frontrunner Bellingham as its spearhead. Ancelotti has long been hailed for being a coach who maintains a strong dressing-room culture, but there is no doubt that his tactical brilliance is what has led Madrid to this point in their season.

That's not to say that everything has been smooth sailing for Madrid this season. Until 2023-24, the Blancos had remained relatively injury-free during Ancelotti's tenure. Benzema may have struggled with various knocks during his final season at the club, but the manager had always benefitted from valuable depth down the spine of his team. Centre-back and goalkeeper, in particular, were areas of strength.

That changed within the space of six days in August. Thibaut Courtois went down first, rupturing his ACL in training while undergoing a fairly routine drill on the eve of the campaign. Eder Militao was next, popping his knee after an awkward slide in Los Blancos' season opener away at Athletic Club. The key duo were immediately ruled out for the campaign.

Madrid, of course, had some depth in defence, with Antonio Rudiger and David Alaba able to step in, at least until the latter suffered his own serious knee injury in December. But Courtois was, effectively, irreplaceable. Either the top goalkeeper in the world or very close to it, his efforts between the sticks had been vital in countless wins over the past two seasons.

A replacement arrived in the shape of Kepa Arrizabalaga, who came in on loan Chelsea, but the arrival of the oft-maligned Spaniard was a puzzling one, especially given his inconsistencies during his time at Stamford Bridge. And while there have been some issues to iron out, things could barely have gone better given the issues Madrid have faced at the back.

Kepa and Andriy Lunin have kept mistakes to a minimum as they battle for the No.1 jersey, while Rudiger in particular has stepped up at the heart of the backline. Their efforts have meant that Madrid have conceded just 11 goals in 19 La Liga games, giving them the second-best defensive record of any team in Europe's 'Big Five' leagues. Potential problem nullified.

On September 24, Los Blancos were handily beaten in the Madrid derby. Bellingham was kept quiet for the first time since his arrival from Borussia Dortmund, and a litany of defensive errors and lack of sharpness in front of goal saw Ancelotti's side battered 3-1 by city rivals Atletico. It was no more than they deserved.

"We didn’t start well or defend well," Ancelotti said. "When they went 2-0 up, they played the game they wanted to. Atleti did better than us in this sense... When the team doesn’t do what it has to do, it’s my responsibility. I shoulder that, it’s my fault."

If Ancelotti felt that he needed to raise his game, then results since suggest he has done just that. A week later, Madrid battered surprise title contenders Girona, 3-0. They followed that up with a 3-2 win at the Diego Maradona Stadium against Napoli, complete with a Bellingham wonder strike.

Then came the big one. Madrid were clear favourites ahead of the first Clasico of the season in October, as Barcelona were dealing with injuries to the likes of Frenkie de Jong, Pedri and Robert Lewandowski. Still, Barca were the better side for 45 minutes. They deserved their 1-0 lead at half-time, and had Ferran Torres been more clinical in front of goal, could have led by two or three. Madrid barely had a sniff.

But after the break, Bellingham came alive. He scored twice in the space of 25 minutes, his first a 30-yard thunderbolt to equalise, and followed that with a deft flick to win his first Clasico in stoppage-time. Despite being outclassed in the first half, the confidence Ancelotti has instilled in Bellingham and others allowed the England midfielder to lead the team to victory in the second.

There have been some slip-ups since then - including a couple of dour La Liga draws - but Madrid's current unbeaten run stretches to 21 matches as they prepare to return to the Metripolitano on Thursday to take on Atletico in the Copa del Rey last 16.

Beat Diego Simeone's side, and belief that a season stuffed with silverware is on the horizon will only grow after the first trophy of the campaign was secured on Sunday in the most emphatic of circumstances. Madrid needed just 12 minutes to open up a two-goal lead against Barca in the Supercopa final, and never really lost control from there. Ancelotti claimed that the 4-1 result was perhaps unfair on Barca, but it's hard to see where he derived that conclusion from.

Real Madrid have never won the treble, but there is a real possibility that a quadruple could even be on the cards this season. With the Supercopa secured, Ancelotti's side are the favourites to win La Liga despite currently sitting second with a one-point deficit to Girona with a game in hand.

Beating Atletico on Thursday to continue their Copa del Rey run will not be easy, and nor will running the Champions League gauntlet as they prepare to take on RB Leipzig in the last 16 next month, but with Ancelotti's future now certain, there is one less distraction to worry about for a team that will never be out of the limelight.

Perhaps more exciting is the fact that this is just the start of a new era at the Bernabeu. This summer, Brazilian wonderkid Endrick - regarded as the best talent to emerge in the country since Neymar - will arrive from Palmeiras on an already agreed €60 million (£52m/$64m) deal. And while it's wise not to assume anything when it comes to Mbappe's future, it does feel inevitable that he will eventually join Los Blancos at the end of the campaign, too.

There is also talk of Alphonso Davies rejecting a new Bayern Munich contract as he has one eye on becoming Madrid's prospective starting left-back, and suddenly a squad that was getting concerningly old at a fast rate could be both formidably talented and pretty young.

The inverse is, of course, that Modric seems set to leave this summer, while Kroos could also head for the exit. But that would still leave Ancelotti with four world-class midfielders, a rebuilt attacking corps, and an elite full-back to join a strong defensive unit that will only improve with the return of its best players.

Another tactical switch — perhaps back to his preferred 4-3-3 — will be necessary for Ancelotti to get the best out of all involved, but after what he has pulled off in 2023-24, it would be difficult to bet against him finetuning his system by the time next season starts.

Ancelotti had his chance walk off into the sunset, but elected to give himself one last challenge at Madrid. His reward may well end up being his best Madrid team yet.