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The former Spain striker hopes the
Italian can turn the side's season around, but
admits he will be under pressure if he cannot
get the best out a talented group
Sep 15, 2014 14:56:27
By Ben Hayward | Spanish
Football Writer
Real Madrid legend
Santillana has warned Carlo
Ancelotti that no coach is
indispensable at the
Santiago Bernabeu.
Madrid won the Copa del Rey and the Champions
League in Ancelotti's first season in charge, but he
has overseen a shaky start to the 2014-15 campaign,
with three defeats in the last four games.
The first of those saw Madrid miss out on the
Supercopa de Espana against Atletico, while back-to-
back Liga defeats at Real Sociedad and then at
home to Atleti again have seen the Blancos slip to
12th in the Primera Division, already six points
adrift of fierce rivals Barcelona.
Santillana, who won 15 trophies in a 17-year spell at
Real between 1971 and 1988 and scored 290 times
for the Spanish side, believes Ancelotti has enough
quality in his squad to turn the team's season
around - despite the summer sales of Angel Di Maria
and Xabi Alonso.
"Ancelotti has a tremendous squad," the 62-year-old
told Goal. "Even though Madrid may miss Alonso
and Di Maria, there is sufficient quality in that squad
for the coach to work with. He needs to be patient,
find a way of putting the players in the positions
which best suit the team and build a compact side.
"I hope he can turn it around, but nobody is
indispensable at Real Madrid."
Meanwhile, the former Spain striker suggests the
club need a better balance in terms of their signing
policy.
"We all know about the strategy of [Madrid
president] Florentino Perez," he said. "He wants to
bring in the best players in the world and there's a
lot of marketing involved. They are great players,
but that's not always a guarantee of success. You
could recruit all of the best architects, but that
wouldn't mean they would necessarily construct
better buildings.
"Look at Atletico, for example. They have an inferior
squad [to Real], but Diego Simeone transmits his
message to the team and gets 200 per cent out of
those players. They are humble and each one works
for his team-mate.
"At Madrid, the best thing would be to have a
signing strategy that's 50-50 - half about business
and half thinking about players who will fit into the
team and improve the side."
Italian can turn the side's season around, but
admits he will be under pressure if he cannot
get the best out a talented group
Sep 15, 2014 14:56:27
By Ben Hayward | Spanish
Football Writer
Real Madrid legend
Santillana has warned Carlo
Ancelotti that no coach is
indispensable at the
Santiago Bernabeu.
Madrid won the Copa del Rey and the Champions
League in Ancelotti's first season in charge, but he
has overseen a shaky start to the 2014-15 campaign,
with three defeats in the last four games.
The first of those saw Madrid miss out on the
Supercopa de Espana against Atletico, while back-to-
back Liga defeats at Real Sociedad and then at
home to Atleti again have seen the Blancos slip to
12th in the Primera Division, already six points
adrift of fierce rivals Barcelona.
Santillana, who won 15 trophies in a 17-year spell at
Real between 1971 and 1988 and scored 290 times
for the Spanish side, believes Ancelotti has enough
quality in his squad to turn the team's season
around - despite the summer sales of Angel Di Maria
and Xabi Alonso.
"Ancelotti has a tremendous squad," the 62-year-old
told Goal. "Even though Madrid may miss Alonso
and Di Maria, there is sufficient quality in that squad
for the coach to work with. He needs to be patient,
find a way of putting the players in the positions
which best suit the team and build a compact side.
"I hope he can turn it around, but nobody is
indispensable at Real Madrid."
Meanwhile, the former Spain striker suggests the
club need a better balance in terms of their signing
policy.
"We all know about the strategy of [Madrid
president] Florentino Perez," he said. "He wants to
bring in the best players in the world and there's a
lot of marketing involved. They are great players,
but that's not always a guarantee of success. You
could recruit all of the best architects, but that
wouldn't mean they would necessarily construct
better buildings.
"Look at Atletico, for example. They have an inferior
squad [to Real], but Diego Simeone transmits his
message to the team and gets 200 per cent out of
those players. They are humble and each one works
for his team-mate.
"At Madrid, the best thing would be to have a
signing strategy that's 50-50 - half about business
and half thinking about players who will fit into the
team and improve the side."