Some big breaking news on Tuesday night has seen Everton announce that Carlo Ancelotti has left the club to replace Zinedine Zidane at Real Madrid.
The news comes as quite a shock given the Italian was thought to be at the beginning of a long-term project on Merseyside, however the Italian is off and has already been announced at the Bernabeu.
As a result, there’s one name immediately doing the rounds as his likely successor – former Newcastle United manager Rafa Benitez.
He may have strong connections with their bitter rivals on Merseyside, but he did refuse to rule out a move to Goodison not so long ago.
A job at Everton would also see him work right next to his family in the Wirral, not to mention they are an ambitious club capable of backing him with big money in their bid to break the top four. If the fans were happy to accept him, this feels like a very likely move – and The Athletic have already revealed that he’s on their short-list.
This also comes barely 10 days on from Wolves announcing Nuno Espirito Santo’s exit – another vacancy that could’ve appealed to the Spaniard now he’s out of China, back in England and itching for a return to top flight management; preferable in the Premier League based on recent interviews.
Here’s the ‘breaking news’ from Sky Sports:
Here’s the Everton statement confirming Ancelotti has gone:
Everton can confirm that Carlo Ancelotti has left his position as manager to take up the role of Head Coach at Real Madrid.
Ancelotti, who joined Everton on a four-and-a-half-year contract in December 2019, said: “I would like to thank the Board of Directors, the players, and the Evertonians for the tremendous support they have all given me during my time at the Club.
“I have complete respect for everyone associated with Everton and hope they can achieve the exciting opportunities they have in front of them.
“While I have enjoyed being at Everton I have been presented with an unexpected opportunity which I believe is the right move for me and my family at this time.”
Everton would like to place on record its thanks to Carlo for his service to the Club over the past 18 months.
The Club will begin the process of appointing a new manager immediately and will provide updates in due course.
