Real Madrid manager Carlo Ancelotti is the most successful manager in UEFA Champions League history. The Italian coach has won the European trophy four times in his managerial career. 

The 62-year-old, who has also won two UCL titles as a player, is the only manager to win the continental championship four times.

Carlo Ancelotti’s UEFA Champions League trophies

Carlo Ancelotti has won the UEFA Champions League four times - 2003, 2007, 2014 and 2022. While the first two triumphs came with AC Milan, the next two were with Spanish giants Real Madrid.

The 2003 success and eventual disappointment

Ancelotti’s first taste of Champions League success came in 2003 when his AC Milan dream team defeated fellow Serie A side Juventus in the final. A match that went goalless in regulation time was decided through penalties. David Trezeguet, Marcelo Zalayeta and Paolo Montero faltered for Juve as Milan won the game 3-2 on penalties.

Two years later, in 2005, the same Milam team lost the UCL final to Liverpool in what is now considered as one of the finest comebacks in football history. 

Goals from Paolo Maldini and Hernan Crespo had put Milan 3-0 up within the opening 45 minutes. While the first period was all Milan, Liverpool turned the tides within six minutes, with goals from Steven Gerrard, Vladimír Smicer and Xabi Alonso making it 3-3.

The game once again went to penalties where a certain Jerzy Dudek proved out to be the messiah as Milan went home without the honour.

Ancelotti completed his retribution in 2007 when the two met in the 2006-07 final. This time around, Milan managed to hold on to their 2-1 lead and the game ended in regulation time.

Carlo Ancelotti’s double with Real Madrid

His first season with Real Madrid started the Galacticos�?dominance in European football to an extent that between 2014 and 2022, the team has won five UEFA Champions League titles. 

The 2013-14 UCL final is particularly remembered for Sergio Ramos’s injury-time equalizer against Atletico Madrid. Real went on to win the final 4-1 in extra time. 

After a brief tour around Europe, the Italian returned to Madrid in 2022 and guided the team to their 14th European title, once again beating Liverpool in the final.

Before the 2021-22 triumph, Ancelotti was one among three managers to have won the UCL title three times as a coach. Former Liverpool manager Bob Paisley won the title in 1977, 1978 and 1981 while Zinedine Zidane did the same with Real Madrid in 2016, 2017 and 2018.

Meanwhile, as many as 17 different managers have won the Champions League two times. This includes Alex Ferguson, Pep Guardiola and Jose Mourinho.

Most successful managers in UEFA Champions League history

Featured photo: AFP / Anne-Christine Poujoulat

Sir Alex Ferguson, over the course of his legendary coaching career, won a whopping 49 titles, the most trophies by a manager in football.

The Scottish manager began his management career with East Stirling, at the age of 32. It was short-lived as he signed on his first full-time job with St Mirren in October 1974. It was during this time that he won his first title - Scottish Football League First Division in 1977.

Following his first and only managerial sack in 1978, Alex Ferguson joined Aberdeen. With three top-flight titles, four Scottish Cups, and triumphs in the UEFA Cup Winners' Cup and UEFA Super Cup, the Scotsman built up a repertoire and soon enough English giants Manchester United came calling.

In 1986, Sir Alex Ferguson left Scotland to join United, replacing Ron Atkinson. Four years into his stint as MUFC boss, Ferguson won the FA Cup in 1990 and followed it up with a FA Charity/Community Shield (shared with Liverpool), UEFA Cup Winners' Cup and UEFA Super Cup (both in 1990-91).

Ferguson ended Manchester United’s 26-year wait for a top-flight title in the inaugural Premier League season of 1992/93, and went on to win a record 13 Premier League titles until his retirement at the end of the 2012/13 campaign.

In his trophy-laden career as Red Devils boss, Alex Ferguson won five FA Cups, four League Cups, and two UEFA Champions League titles. He also won the season-opener Community Shield nine times.

Most trophies by a manager in football

Mircea Lucescu, 76, is the second-most manager in football history. The Romanian took his first steps into management as a player-coach of the now-dissolved FC Corvinul Hunedoara în 1979, and led them to the Liga II title in 1979�?0.

His first major job as head coach was when he was appointed Romania’s manager in 1981. As Lucescu was in his final year in charge of the national team, he signed his first contract as a full-time club manager when he joined Dinamo București in 1985.

After winning three trophies (two Cupa României, one Divizia A), Mircea Lucescu won two trophies across two managerial spells in Italy (1990-1996, 1999).

On either side of his brief term as Inter Milan coach, Lucescu sat in the hot seat at Rapid București and won three trophies.

Mircea Lucescu would later spend his time as manager in Turkey, where he won the league title with Galatasaray and Beşiktaş. He also won the UEFA Super Cup with Galatasaray.

However, his most productive spell as a manager came after joining Ukrainian giants Shakhtar Donetsk. In his 12 years at the helm, the Romanian won eight league titles, seven Super Cups, six Cups and the 2008-09 UEFA Cup before it would be rechristened as the UEFA Europa League.

After winning a trophy with Zenit Saint Petersburg and two years as Turkey national team coach, Mircea Lucescu joined Dynamo Kyiv in 2020 and has won three titles since.

Lucescu’s haul of 36 titles, however, is likely to be surpassed by current Manchester City coach Pep Guardiola. One of the most successful coaches in the modern era, Guardiola is third on the list of most trophies won by a manager in football history with 31 titles.

The Spaniard’s trophy-laden spell began with his boyhood club Barcelona, where he won the Division trophy with Barcelona’s B team in June 2007. The following year he was thrust into senior management and quickly shot to stardom by winning the club’s first-ever treble - UEFA Champions League, LaLiga and Copa del Rey.

In four seasons as Barcelona coach, Pep Guardiola won 14 trophies across six different competitions before signing as Bayern Munich’s coach after taking a break in the 2012-13 season.

At Bayern, Guardiola bagged three Bundesliga titles, two DFB-Pokal, UEFA Super Cup and FIFA Club World Cup.

Currently at Manchester City, the Spanish manager has won ten trophies including three Premier League titles.

Valeriy Lobanovskyi (29 trophies) and Jock Stein (26 trophies) complete the top-five list for most trophies won by a manager in football.

Jose Mourinho and Carlo Ancelotti are the notable mentions for most trophies won by a manager in football. Ancelotti, with 22 titles, is the first manager to win a league title in each of the five major European Leagues (Premier League, Serie A, Bundesliga, Ligue 1 and La Liga). He recently led Real Madrid to their 35th La Liga title.

Mourinho, on the other hand, is the first football manager to win all three UEFA club competitions after his AS Roma team beat Feyenoord 1-0 to win the inaugural UEFA Europa Conference League.

The Portuguese manager, who began his coaching career with Benfica in 2000, has 26 trophies to his name.

Author: William Paul

Featured photo: AFP / ANDREW YATES

Frank Lampard called for a "big reflection" on VAR at the end of the season after another controversial incident involving the technology in the midweek Premier League fixtures.

Tottenham were controversially denied an equaliser against Sheffield United on Thursday when Harry Kane's goal was chalked off for a dubious handball against Lucas Moura.

In a Premier League season marred by debatable calls, Spurs boss Jose Mourinho, whose side lost 3-1, said he feared for the future of football if the system was not addressed.

Chelsea boss Lampard, who played under Mourinho as a player at Stamford Bridge, said the goal should have stood.

"It was certainly one where common sense could have been involved but if the rule book states something, then the handball is given," he told reporters on Friday.

"We need a big reflection at the end of the season.

"VAR has improved us in ways but there are ways to improve it and I think a collective sit-down at the end of the season with everybody -- referees, managers, players, anybody involved in football that loves the game can have an input to try and get it closer to where we want to get it to."

Everton boss Carlo Ancelotti also called for a review of the rules.

"It was a really, really complicated and difficult decision," he said.

"I think the decision they have made comes from the rules that there are in place in this moment and so maybe at the end of this season we can think if it's possible to change this type of rule but in this moment it's like this and we have to respect the rules."

Chelsea's defeat at West Ham ended a run of three successive Premier League wins and means victory against struggling Watford at Stamford Bridge is vital in the race for Champions League spots.

Chelsea, in fourth spot, are just two points ahead of Manchester United and Wolves.

Lampard challenged his players to restore the mentality that underpinned the good run that preceded Wednesday's lacklustre 3-2 loss.

"Every game now is going to be tough," said Lampard.

"If we go into it with the right attitude that we approached games like Aston Villa and Manchester City, and Everton and Liverpool before the break, then I have real belief in us.

"It's about getting our mentality right, keeping freshness in the players between games and having a real desire to achieve want we want."

Feature image courtesy: AFP / Oli Scarff

It goes without saying that Carlo Ancelotti is one of the greatest managers football has ever seen. The Italian mastermind started out his managerial career with Reggiana in Italy, before going on to manage Parma and Juventus. His most memorable stint came at the turn of the millennium with AC Milan, where he would go on to create history.

Ancelotti then took over the reins at Chelsea and enjoyed much success before moving to Paris Saint-Germain to establish them as the superpowers of France. Then came a dream move to Real Madrid, where uncle Carlo would go on to deliver the La Decima, writing his name in the history books at Santiago Bernabeu.

A short but fairly successful stint at Bayern Munich followed, before he returned to Italy to manage Napoli for a year and a half. Currently the 60-year-old is in charge at Everton. 

Ancelotti has won league titles in four different countries �?Italy, England, France and Germany and has won the Champions League with two different clubs. Not many managers can claim to have achieved those feats.

Read | Ultimate XI of players coached by Jose Mourinho

Naturally, the 60-year-old has worked with an array of great footballers along the way. Gigi Buffon, Zinedine Zidane, Paolo Maldini, Cafu, Pippo Inzaghi, Andrea Pirlo, Andriy Shevchenko, Ronaldo, Ronaldinho, Kaka, Frank Lampard, Zlatan Ibrahimović, Cristiano Ronaldo, you name it and there are chances that the legends have worked with Ancelotti at some point in their careers.

So, picking the best XI of players coached by the Italian is not going to be easy. As we speak, his all-conquering AC Milan side from the early 2000s could only make up the whole team. Which is why we are restricting ourselves to players coached by uncle Carlo that are still active and playing. So, without further ado, let’s get into it;

Gianluigi Buffon (Parma)

Iker Casillas retired earlier this year and while Ancelotti worked with Manuel Neuer for a little over a year, the German was out injured for a good chunk of the spell. This leaves Gigi Buffon as the obvious choice in goal. The legendary Italian goalkeeper featured in 74 of Ancelotti's 87 matches in charge at Parma between 1996 and 1998, in which he kept 31 clean sheets.

RB: Branislav Ivanovic (Chelsea)

Dani Carvajal and Joshua Kimmich were the other contenders for the spot, but it is Branislav Ivanovic that gets the pick due to the role he played in Chelsea’s success under Ancelotti. Of the 109 matches that the 60-year-old took charge of at Chelsea, Ivanovic featured in 89 of those and contributed with seven goals and 13 assists. 

The Serb is only behind John Terry and Petr Cech in the list of most frequently used players by Ancelotti during his time at Chelsea.

CB: Pepe (Real Madrid)

The Portuguese doesn’t always get due credit for the role he played in Madrid’s success, with his rash antics getting into the spotlight more often than not. However, Pepe was an integral member of Ancelotti’s Real Madrid side, featuring in 86 of the Italian’s 119 matches in charge.

The veteran centre-back was a constant fixture in the 2013-14 Champions League-winning side, despite missing the final, while he was a regular in the side that won the Copa del Rey that season as well.

CB: Sergio Ramos (Real Madrid)

The leader of the pack. Casillas may have had the captain’s armband during Real Madrid’s UCL triumph under Ancelotti, but Sergio Ramos was as much of a captain of the team as the goalkeeper. The Spaniard marshalled the troops from the back on the way to the club’s La Decima triumph under Ancelotti. The centre-back featured in 93 of Ancelotti’s 119 matches at Real Madrid, scoring 14 goals, including the all-important equalizer in the Champions League final against Atletico Madrid.

LB: Marcelo (Real Madrid)

Another key member of the Champions League-winning side at Real Madrid, Marcelo enhanced his status as one of the best-attacking full-backs in the game under Ancelotti. The Brazil left-back featured 92 times under the Italian at Real Madrid, bagging six goals and supplying 18 assists.

RW: Gareth Bale (Real Madrid)

Arjen Robben would have been a strong contender had he not retired last year, leaving the field clear for Gareth Bale. The Welsh wing wizard’s time at Real Madrid has been mired by injuries and dodgy relationship with the fanbase, but Bale played some of his finest football in the Whites of Real Madrid under Ancelotti. 

Bale featured in 92 matches under the Italian tactician and went on to score 39 goals in the process, which included the all-important extra-time goal against Atletico in the final on the way to La Decima. He also set up 31 goals during the pair’s time together at the Bernabeu.

CM: Luka Modric (Real Madrid)

James Rodriguez was also a contender for this berth, but the Croatian gets the nod as he was a key member of the side that lifted the Champions League under Ancelotti. 

Modric made 76 appearances for Real under the Italian tactician, setting up 14 goals, including one in the 13/14 final against Atleti, while chipping in with three as well. The former Spurs man was an ever-present in the UCL winning side, missing just two matches, one due to suspension.

CM: Blaise Matuidi (PSG)

One of the most under-rated, but most prominent members of the dominant PSG side under Ancelotti, Matuidi gets his due credit here. The French midfielder missed just six of Ancelotti’s 77 games in charge at PSG over two seasons, highlighting his importance and the level of consistency he managed during that spell, helping PSG to the Ligue 1 title in 2012/13.

LW: Cristiano Ronaldo (Real Madrid)

101 matches, 112 goals �?two in the La Decima winning finale against Atletico Madrid, 46 assists under Carlo Ancelotti at Real Madrid. Nothing more needs to be said.

ST: Zlatan Ibrahimović (PSG)

The Swedish maverick might not have worked for a long time with Ancelotti, but he was one of the chief driving forces of the Italian’s successful project at PSG. Ibrahimović plundered 35 goals and assisted 18 more in his 46 appearances under Ancelotti, kickstarting the era of dominance for PSG in France.

ST: Robert Lewandowski (Bayern Munich)

The Polish goalscoring machine enjoyed one of his most prolific seasons at Bayern Munich in 2016/17 under Ancelotti and had made a great start to 17/18 as well before the Italian was relieved of his duties. Having missed just three of the 60 games Bayern played under the 60-year-old, Lewandowski plundered 54 goals and assisted 16 more, winning a Bundesliga title.

In a turn of unexpected events, Napoli decided to part ways with their manager Carlo Ancelotti after a poor spell of results in the Serie A and appointed Gennaro Gattuso in his place.  However, they have qualified for the round of 16 in the Champions League but sit at the seventh spot in the domestic league.

Ancelotti has been praised for his outings against Liverpool in Europe’s premier football competition, having defeated the Reds 2-0 in the first leg at home in the group stage. Despite his successful outings in Europe, Napoli’s president, Aurelio de Laurentiis decided it will be in the club’s interest if the 60-year-old manager is removed from his duties.

One Of The Best & UnLuckiest Manager In World Football.

A Manager You Cannot Hate But In End Always Gets Disrespectfully Sacked..

Don Carlo Ancelotti. 🙁 pic.twitter.com/r1I5z7Sok5

�?AZR Organization (@AzrOrganization) December 11, 2019

The Italian manager was in his second season in charge of Napoli and has a glorious past attached to his resume. Ancelotti has won the Premier League and FA cup in the 2009-2010 season with Chelsea and is well respected in the footballing circle.

Read | Things you didn’t know Aaron Wan-Bissaka could tackle

His trophy cabinet also includes three Champions League trophies �?two with AC Milan and one with Real Madrid and given the current state of affairs, the Italian is being linked with jobs at Everton and Arsenal after his sacking.

Gattuso’s first training session in charge. #ForzaNapoliSempre pic.twitter.com/vNbA8hucgX

�?Everything Napoli (@NapoliAndNaples) December 11, 2019

Napoli were quick to react and went straight to AC Milan’s former manager, Gennaro Gattuso in their time of need. Gattuso has played under the 60-year-old manager during their time together at AC Milan back in 2007-2008.

Gattuso has expressed nothing but gratitude for Ancelotti after taking over the reins. "He is like a father to me. He's always been close to me and supported me. He's won it all and I still have a lot to prove."

Ancelotti’s expulsion might have come across as a shock to many, but the upper echelons of the club seemed to have relied more on finding solutions to Napoli’s domestic troubles rather than focusing on the Champions League. Gattuso might be a panic appointment but it’ll all come together if the 41-year-old manages to turn things around in the second half of the season. 

Feature image courtesy: AFP/ GIUSEPPE CACACE

Napoli coach Carlo Ancelotti was told by the Italian club on Wednesday to take charge as players abandoned an enforced training camp following a series of poor results.

Club president Aurelio De Laurentiis ordered the team to be confined to a training camp after last weekend's 2-1 league defeat to Roma saw the southerners slip to seventh in Serie A.

But as Ancelotti disagreed with the lockdown, the players all returned home after a 1-1 draw against Salzburg on Tuesday which stalled their bid to reach the Champions League last 16.

"The responsibility to decide on ordering days in a training retreat lies with coach Carlo Ancelotti," the club said in a statement Wednesday.

The club also threatened action against the players.

WOW!

New details in Napoli mutiny.

President had already left the stadium.

Squad was due to be driven after game straight to training camp for 5 days retreat.

The captain Insigne, on behalf of all team, went to president’s son and said:
“We go home. Go tell it to your dad�?/p>

�?Tancredi Palmeri (@tancredipalmeri) November 6, 2019

"With reference to the behaviour of the players yesterday (Tuesday), it (the club) will proceed to protect its rights on an economic, capital, image and disciplinary levels in every competent jurisdiction," the statement added.

"A press silence has been ordered from now until a date yet to be decided."

Ancelotti refused to attend Tuesday's post-match press conference in Naples.

"The club has taken this decision and we have to accept it. But, if you ask me if I agree, I would say no," Ancelotti said concerning the training camp on Monday.

Napoli have taken just two points from their last three Serie A games and are now 11 points behind leaders Juventus.

New details in Napoli mutiny (5)!

Napoli official statement saying that will protect its interest in all the ways (!) and that from now on that decision on retreat will be Ancelotti solely responsibility

�?Tancredi Palmeri (@tancredipalmeri) November 6, 2019

The training camp was supposed to run until they host Genoa on Saturday at their San Paolo Stadium.

Napoli are still on course to qualify for the Champions League knockout rounds as they are second in Group E behind Liverpool, four points ahead of Salzburg, with two games to play.

Ancelotti, 60, took over from Maurizio Sarri in May 2018 on a three-year contract.

He arrived in Naples boasting three Champions League trophies from his spells with AC Milan and Real Madrid, and a Premier League trophy from his two-year tenure at Chelsea.

The southerners have not lifted the Serie A title since the days of Diego Maradona in 1990.

Feature image courtesy: AFP / Carlo Hermann