Things move very fast in football, and now, just a month after being involved in La Liga's title race, Carlo Ancelotti is the manager of Brazil. I know that still feels weird to say, considering everything he achieved with Real Madrid.
Of course, it was high time Los Blancos moved on from Ancelotti, despite his obvious legendary status. Now, Xabi Alonso is at the helm, but he will still be in close contact with Carlo Ancelotti.
Over the last few years, Real Madrid has built up an incredible Brazilian core. This is why the pathway from Real Madrid to Brazil felt natural to Carlo Ancelotti, with the likes of Vinicius Junior, Eder Militao, Rodrygo and Endrick still at his disposal.
Hold that thought, as Carlo Ancelotti has singled out Vinicius Junior in a pledge that can't be ignored by Real Madrid fans.
Ancelotti just made a powerful Vinicius Jr. statement to Real Madrid fans
In his own words, Carlo Ancelotti said: “You’ll soon see the best version of Vinicius Jr here with Brazil, same as with Real Madrid. He’s ready and motivated”.
The Brazil national team has certainly seen better days, but they hope that by hiring the serial winner Carlo Ancelotti, who has already achieved success with a lot of the Brazil squad, they'll return to those former glory days. Of course, they'll have an eye on the 2026 World Cup in the USA, Canada and Mexico.
For Carlo Ancelotti to single out Vinicius Junior as a Brazil player to keep an eye on, this obviously has Real Madrid implications. How Vinicius performs on the international stage could determine how he performs on the domestic stage.
Ancelotti said that we'll soon be seeing the best version of Vinicius Junior. We all know what this means, as the best version of Vini competes for the Ballon d'Or.
Admittedly, last season wasn't the best version of Vini. However, it wasn't the best version of any Real Madrid player, except for maybe Kylian Mbappe.
For Vini to be learning from both Ancelotti and Alonso, this could be huge for his skillset and confidence. It's clear to see that both managers view him as the main man for their respective teams, which is a role he has the bandwidth to fulfill.
Let's hope that Ancelotti's prediction about Vinicius comes true. It will have a huge ripple effect, after all.