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Giorgio Contini (49) has simply not had time for that in recent years. The former GC, Lausanne, St. Gallen and Vaduz coach visited Madrid last week. Short vacation and further training. Contini was given a taste of the great Real Madrid and looked over the shoulders of coach Carlo Ancelotti (64).
The doors of the Real campus are not open to every coach. For this you need personal contacts. Contini’s visit was made possible by his former athletics coach at Lausanne, who now works on the staff of Real Madrid.
Contini is impressed with Ciudad, Real’s training ground, the staff and players like Bellingham, Vinicius Junior and Joselu. “It’s all a completely different world,” says Contini, who said goodbye to the rankings in the summer and has been without a club since then.
But Ancelotti impressed him even more. The 64-year-old Italian, who has won everything there is to win as a coach in club football. He is German champion, English champion, Italian champion, French champion and he won the Champions League four times, to name just the most important ones. “Despite all these successes, he is very approachable and courteous,” says Contini.
According to Contini, Ancelotti does not leave training to his numerous assistants and is not close to the players. “When I was there, he was always on the training pitch. He himself led the last training for the Champions League match against Union and gave the speech in the dressing room.”
And what impressed him most about the world coach? Contini: “His incredible calmness in dealing with the players. He talks a lot to everyone, often asks his protagonists for their opinions and allows them to have a say on important matters.
Naturally, Contini was present for Real’s narrow 1-0 win over Union Berlin at the Estadio Santiago Bernabéu. But he wasn’t exactly happy with Bellingham’s winning goal deep into stoppage time. He knows the national coaches far too well for that. Head coach Urs Fischer (57) and especially his assistant Markus Hoffmann (51). The Austrian was once assistant coach of Contini at FC St. Gallen. The relationship is still good. So good that he met Fischer and Hoffmann for coffee at the Union team hotel the night before the cracker.
Fischer and Hoffmann felt sorry for Contini
After the match, Contini says, he felt sorry for them: “It’s very bitter. You are so close to a point against Real at the Bernabéu and then you still go home without a point.”
He flew back himself on Friday. With many impressions in my luggage and the idea of visiting Ancelotti and Real again soon. “Then hopefully a little longer and not during an English week,” says Contini. Ancelotti said he would like to return.
|
team
|
SP
|
T.D
|
PT
|
||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
1
|
 Girona FC
|
7
|
10
|
19
|
|
|
2
|
 Real Madrid
|
7
|
7
|
18
|
|
|
3
|
 FC Barcelona
|
7
|
10
|
17
|
|
|
4
|
 Athletic Bilbao
|
7
|
7
|
14
|
|
|
5
|
 Real Society
|
7
|
3
|
12
|
|
|
6
|
 Rayo Vallecano
|
7
|
-2
|
11
|
|
|
7
|
 Atletico Madrid
|
5
|
8th
|
10
|
|
|
8th
|
 Valencia CF
|
7
|
2
|
10
|
|
|
9
|
 Cadiz CF
|
7
|
-2
|
9
|
|
|
10
|
 Getafe CF
|
7
|
-3
|
8th
|
|
|
11
|
 Genuine Betis Balompie
|
6
|
-5
|
8th
|
|
|
12
|
 FC Seville
|
6
|
2
|
7
|
|
|
13
|
 CA Osasuna
|
6
|
-1
|
7
|
|
|
14
|
 Villarréal CF
|
7
|
-3
|
7
|
|
|
15
|
 RCD Mallorca
|
7
|
-3
|
6
|
|
|
16
|
 Deportivo Alaves
|
6
|
-4
|
6
|
|
|
17
|
 UD Las Palmas
|
7
|
-4
|
5
|
|
|
18
|
 RC Celta de Vigo
|
6
|
-4
|
4
|
|
|
19
|
 Grenada CF
|
6
|
-8th
|
3
|
|
|
20
|
 UD Almeria
|
7
|
-10
|
2
|
Source : Blick
I’m Emma Jack, a news website author at 24 News Reporters. I have been in the industry for over five years and it has been an incredible journey so far. I specialize in sports reporting and am highly knowledgeable about the latest trends and developments in this field.
