Arguably no move in the summer 2025 transfer window will shake world football more than Real Madrid's decision to fire three-time (with them, at least) Champions League-winning manager Carlo Ancelotti after the legendary Italian coach failed to win a single trophy for the Merengues in 2024/25 and lost all three El Clasicos to Barcelona.
It was a sour way for Ancelotti to end an incredible second stint in Madrid, in which he brought not one - but two - Champions League titles to the club for their first time since losing Cristiano Ronaldo to Juventus in 2018.
Even though it was time to move on from Don Carlo and bring in a manager with fresh ideas in Alonso, the impact Carletto left on Real Madrid will be felt profoundly, and even his harshest critics among Madridistas were probably shedding at least one tear.
Now coaching the Brazil national team, Ancelotti's departure is a plus for those who were tormented by Real Madrid's success, especially in the Champions League. Carlo had a knack for getting his Madrid team to push past impossible situations in knockout ties, and Pep Guardiola's Manchester City were victimized the most by this.
Carlo won two Champions League titles for Real Madrid as the underdog
Although Guardiola did get his revenge on Ancelotti in the 2022/23 season with a 4-0 demolition of the reigning Champions League winners in the semifinals to go on to win his first Champions League title with the Citizens, he was stymied by Ancelotti thrice in the knockouts.
The first time was with the unforgettable Rodrygo Goes comeback win, the second was in 2023/24 as Real's revenge for 2022/23 before Carlo won the title again, and the third was in the 2024/25 season before the Round of 16 even began on a 6-3 aggregate.
Needless to say, Guardiola is happy to see the backside of Ancelotti not only in the Champions League, but in club football as a whole. Here's what the legendary Catalan manager had to say about his Real Madrid counterpart in an interview with Fernando Kallas of Reuters: "I'm so happy for him (Ancelotti), but I'm so happy that he's not in Madrid anymore because all the time he beats me. That I don't have to handle it anymore"
Nobody, not even Jurgen Klopp or Jose Mourinho at Real Madrid himself, tormented Guardiola at the highest level than Ancelotti. Klopp only got the drop on Guardiola once in the league. Mourinho was an important nuisance, but Guardiola's silverware cabinet outweighed Mou's during their mutual time in Spain.
But Ancelotti? He beat Guardiola against the odds twice and was three-for-four against the Manchester City manager in the Champions League knockouts and was really only favored once in the 2024/25 season. That's an absurd record, and what frustrates Guardiola the most has to be the fact that City would have won two Champions League titles in 2021/22 and 2023/24 if it weren't for the sheer guile of Madrid, playing the role of the underdog so perfectly.