'Dad was upset' - Carlo Ancelotti feud with Italy boss Gennaro Gattuso revealed as daughter says Brazil coach is 'too calm' and never gets angry

As a player, Gattuso played numerous matches under Ancelotti during the Italian manager's stay at AC Milan as the pair won two Champions League titles together. The duo had a great relationship until Gattuso took over the reins at Napoli after Ancelotti was fired. While Napoli CEO Aurelio Di Laurentiis was planning to sack Ancelotti, he held initial talks with Gattuso. When Ancelotti heard about the rumours, he contacted his former student, but Gattuso denied any such contact. A few days later, after defeating Genk in the Champions League, Ancelotti was fired and later on Gattuso was hired. The latter did not inform his former boss of his decision to take over the remains. The situation escalated to such an extent that when Ancelotti came back to clear his locker, he avoided eye contact with Gattuso.

The incident took place six years ago, but Ancelotti has still been avoiding Gattuso. However, his daughter, Katia, wants the duo to meet professionally at the upcoming World Cup, where both Ancelotti and Gattuso will be managing Brazil and Italy, respectively. She said in an interview with Corriere della Sera: "They never spoke or saw each other again. Dad was upset and doesn't pretend anything happened. Rino never called him again, they'll probably see each other again at the World Cup, we all hope Italy goes there. A Brazil-Italy final would be great, the last one was in 1994, dad was Sacchi's assistant. Where was Gattuso?!"

While Katia has heard that her father is capable of angry outbursts in the dressing room at his job, but she says has only seen the calm side of him. "I'd like to see him angry. Just once. On the pitch and in the locker room, it happens, they say. My brother Davide and my husband Mino talk about crazy outbursts, a version of dad I'm not familiar with. 

"I'd like to see him like that in real life, sometimes. He doesn't put himself out there. He never wants to displease anyone. A man who's too calm is probably ahead of his time. He tends to avoid conflict, but every now and then you have to take a stand, which may not be right for everyone."

Ancelotti, as Real Madrid manager, last met Gattuso in 2023 when the latter was in charge of Valencia, with the capital club winning the Supercopa de Espana semi-final 5-4 on penalties after playing out a 1-1 draw. The Madrid boss had said about the dispute in their relationship: "We had some very nice moments. We have had personal problems that I don't want to talk about." 

Gattuso, however, was polite and showed immense respect to his former manager. He said: "When I went to coach Napoli at that time, the press and television talked about the team being good and there was a problem. But he knows I respect him a lot. It was a work problem. We are talking about one of the best coaches in the world. For my part personally, humanly and footballistically, I have a lot of respect for him."

Ancelotti is currently managing the Brazil national side. When the November international break commences, he will lead the Selecao to two friendlies against African sides Senegal and Tunisia on November 15 and 18, respectively. Gattuso, who took over the Italian hot seat from Luciano Spalletti, will face Moldova on November 13 and Norway on November 16 in World Cup qualifying. The Azzurri are eager to avoid failing to qualify for the competition for a third consecutive time under Gattuso, himself a World Cup winner.