According to BBC, Carlo Ancelotti is close to being appointed as Everton’s new manager. Doing so would be a massive coup for the club, considering his excellent CV after enduring a rudderless season.
Ancelotti was relieved of his duties as Napoli boss only last week – with Gennaro Gattuso installed as his replacement. The 60-year-old already has experienced success in this country after winning both the Premier League and the FA Cup during a two-season spell with Chelsea between 2009 and 2011.
Marco Silva, who was sacked following the Toffees’ poor start to the season, hardly did anything to improve Everton’s fortunes and now, they must turn their attention towards pastures anew.
With that in mind, here are 3 things Ancelotti must change at Goodison Park.
Ancelotti has built his career by adding perfection to sides either nearing the top of their game or those with a previous reputation of success. His time at PSG started and ended with the French giants atop the Ligue 1 table, while he ensured that trophies returned to both AC Milan and Real Madrid. The impact was immediate during his time in Spain, in particular.
While Real failed to secure the La Liga title, they did win the Champions League in Ancelotti’s first full season in charge.
While Everton have been a regular Premier League feature, their last trophy came in 1996 when they lifted the Community Shield after winning the FA Cup the season before. They’ve failed to finish higher than fifth in any season since 2005 but have featured in the Europa League.
Ancelotti must target consistency, with a hope that trophies will eventually follow. At the very least, the Toffees need to return to the top-six battle they often found themselves in between 2006 and 2014.
To be able to recruit a manager of Ancelotti’s calibre, despite being placed 16th in the Premier League table, is a fairly remarkable coup from Everton’s perspective.
And while Liverpool are a whopping 31 points ahead, Ancelotti’s potential arrival could significantly alter the complexion of a rivalry which has diminished in a sporting sense in recent years.
He has an abundance of experience at beating and being beaten by Liverpool. While taking the job at Everton would be a tough challenge, Ancelotti is better equipped than most to extract the maximum from the tools at his disposal and set up a team to win a one-off occasion.
The gulf in class remains vast and that seems unlikely to change anytime soon. Should Ancelotti’s appointment be confirmed, however, it could potentially inject the kind of intensity and competitive edge which has been missing from the Merseyside rivalry for some time now.
Moise Kean made the switch to Everton from Juventus in the summer but he has failed to live up to the hype. His spell at the club was summed up during their recent 1-1 draw with Manchester United, where interim manager Duncan Ferguson substituted him just 19 minutes after bringing him on.
While his tactical prowess often grabs the headlines, Ancelotti’s player management skills are unquestionable. Thus, perhaps he could be the one to unlock and hone Kean’s potential in the Premier League.