Carlo Ancelotti says Xabi Alonso has “all the doors open” for a move to a big club, with speculation building that the former Real Madrid midfielder is set to replace the Italian coach at the helm of the Spanish powerhouse.
Ancelotti gave his routine pre-game news conference on Saturday, a day after Alonso announced he was leaving Bayer Leverkusen.
He praised the work of Alonso, who has been widely linked to an eventual move back to Madrid after leading the German club to the Bundesliga title last season.
“I read that Xabi is leaving Bayer Leverkusen, where he did a fantastic job,” Ancelotti said before Sunday’s trip to Barcelona. “He has all the doors open because he has shown that he is one of the best coaches in the world.”
Ancelotti again refused to speak about his future, especially before a decisive Clasico in LaLiga. Madrid trail Barcelona by four points and need to win to keep alive their chances of winning a trophy this campaign.
But he did speak movingly about what Madrid means — and will mean — for the most successful manager in European football.
For Ancelotti, his relationship with the club he has spent six seasons at in two stints is an everlasting “honeymoon”.
“The honeymoon with this club never ends, it continues forever,” he said. “I think that Real Madrid, like Milan before, are the teams that stay with me, given the time I have spent here. At the beginning, there is passion, and when that fades, other feelings emerge, a sense of tender care. My honeymoon with Real Madrid will last for as long as I live.”
The 65-year-old coach is under contract through the next campaign but is widely expected to leave after an underwhelming season in which the team played worse despite adding Kylian Mbappe to its squad.
Brazil have been courting Ancelotti for over a year, and it appears talks are still ongoing with the veteran manager.
Real Madrid must play ‘complete’ game at Barcelona
With only four games remaining of the LaLiga season, only a win will realistically keep Real’s hopes of retaining the title, and for Ancelotti, they will need to get everything right to have a chance on Sunday.
“In this type of game, you have to do things well. Barcelona are used to keeping the opponent in their own area, but no team is perfect,” he said.
“It’s a game where there’s a lot at stake, and to win, you have to manage everything well, defend well, attack well. We have to play a complete game.”
With so much at stake against their great rivals, Ancelotti will have little trouble getting his players fired up.
“It’s not difficult to motivate the players because it’s the type of match for which the players already come out motivated and with a lot of confidence,” he said.
“Playing with Barcelona is special. It will be the last ‘El Clasico’ of the season because Barca are not in the Club World Cup.”
Who’s scoring in #ELCLÁSICO? 🤍 pic.twitter.com/Tgx1X8cVuA
— LALIGA English (@LaLigaEN) May 8, 2025
Barcelona focused despite Champions League woe
Barcelona’s players have discussed last week’s Champions League elimination and are ready to put their disappointment behind them against rivals Real Madrid, manager Hansi Flick said in his news conference on Saturday.
Barca suffered a 4-3 Champions League semifinal defeat by Inter Milan on Tuesday.
A home win on Sunday would move Flick’s side one victory away from their 28th Spanish league title.
“We’re doing well. After the defeat in Milan, everyone knows it’s not easy … but we’re doing things right. We’ve talked about what we want to do in these two weeks,” Flick told reporters.
“There are four more games to go. El Clasico is important, we have to show how well we can play. We have to show confidence. The players are doing very well … We’ve been talking about what they are thinking, what they are feeling.
“We had to talk about it as a group. Everyone knows that in a Clasico, you have to give 100 percent. You have to be active, intense, dominant. Real Madrid is a very good team, and we need the fans.”
El Clasico – the low down
Translated as “The Classic” in English, El Clasico is the name given to any football match between rival clubs Barcelona and Real Madrid.
The special matchup between these football sides was born out of a more-than-a-century-old political-historical dimension between an increasingly distinct Catalan national identity, with FC Barcelona representing Catalonia, pitched against the centralised power structures of Spain’s capital city, Madrid, and by extension, its most famous football club, Real Madrid.
The first match between the two Spanish mega clubs was played on May 13, 1902.
In total, 260 matches have been played. Real Madrid lead in head-to-head results with 105 wins to Barcelona’s 103, with 52 draws.
Last five LaLiga matches
Barcelona: W-W-W-W-D (most recent fixture first)
May 3, 2025 – Real Valladolid 1-2 Barcelona
April 22, 2025 – Barcelona 1-0 Mallorca
April 19, 2025 – Barcelona 4-3 Celta Vigo
April 12, 2025 – Leganes 0-1 Barcelona
April 5, 2025 – Barcelona 1-1 Real Betis
Real Madrid: W-W-W-W-L (most recent fixture first)
May 04, 2025 – Real Madrid 3-2 Celta Vigo
April 23, 2025 – Getafe 0-1 Real Madrid
April 20, 2025 – Real Madrid 1-0 Athletic Club
April 13, 2025 – Alaves 0-1 Real Madrid
April 5, 2025 – Real Madrid 1-2 Valencia
