Muricy backs Ancelotti, fans reconnect with Brazil: "It was a drag" | OneFootball

Current technical coordinator of São Paulo and one of the most decorated coaches in Brazilian football, Muricy Ramalho approved the choice of Carlo Ancelotti to lead the Brazilian National Team. The Italian was announced in May and is already close to completing seven months at the helm of the Canarinho.

Ancelotti's hiring was one of the last acts of Ednaldo Pereira's administration at the head of the CBF and, for Muricy, the only right move by the former president of the entity. In an exclusive interview with TV Gazeta, the São Paulo executive analyzed the arrival of the Italian coach and said he believes the National Team needed someone like him—a leader with a great résumé, but also a very strong human touch.

Since arriving in Brazil, Ancelotti has made an effort to learn Portuguese to facilitate communication with the players and also with the press, as he frequently attends press conferences. In the view of São Paulo’s coordinator, the coach’s attitude, combined with his extensive résumé, has been a way to bring the Brazilian National Team closer to the fans again.

“And there’s one thing: you look at his résumé. It’s simple. You look at the résumé of a guy who has won everything he has. Then you wonder what he’s like as a person. He’s a great guy, learning to speak Portuguese, making a huge effort to attend to everyone. That’s something to be proud of, it makes you want to root for the Brazilian National Team again. It had become very boring to root for the National Team, sometimes you didn’t even know when Brazil was playing, because the fans weren’t attached. It seems to me that now, this is coming back, this closeness to the Brazilian National Team,” said the executive.

Ancelotti was hired by the CBF with a single goal: to lead the Brazilian National Team to its sixth World Cup title. The Canarinho haven’t won the World Cup since 2002, when they beat Germany 2-0 under the command of Luiz Felipe Scolari, better known as Felipão.

“Of course, he’ll still have a bit of difficulty because he doesn’t know everything yet, the players, but with his experience, he’s already started to put the pieces together. As a coach, I know when someone already has control of the place. He’s already started to put the pieces together, the defense for example… a backbone, he’s brought in some players too,” analyzed Muricy Ramalho.

Muricy sees passport as irrelevant and praises Guardiola

In November of this year, coach Carlo Ancelotti attended the second Brazilian Football Coaches Forum, at the CBF headquarters in Rio de Janeiro, and was embarrassed after statements by former coaches Emerson Leão and Oswaldo de Oliveira about foreign coaches.

Muricy Ramalho, however, sees no problem with the Brazilian National Team being led by a foreign coach. The São Paulo coordinator is indifferent to the nationality listed on the passport and asks that coaches be evaluated based on their work on the field.

He also revealed that his first choice to lead the National Team would be Pep Guardiola, from Manchester City, and recalled that his admiration for the Spaniard’s work grew in 2011, when Barcelona thrashed Muricy’s Santos 4-0 and won the FIFA Club World Cup title.

“I think so [if the CBF made the right choice in hiring Ancelotti]. For me, I don’t care where he was born, I want to know if he’s good or not. When it comes to foreign coaches, for me, the best in the world is Guardiola. I think so. It’s a pleasure to watch him manage his team. He does different things, he’s very different, his book is really cool,” commented the former coach.

“He beat me 4-0 once in the Club World Cup final and I became an even bigger fan of his. For me, he’s the best coach in the world. So, if any coach came… I don’t care if he’s Spanish, it would be Guardiola. But it was impossible because he had a contract with City,” concluded Muricy.

Muricy Ramalho spoke exclusively with Gazeta Esportiva (Photo: Thais Bueno/Gazeta Press)

Ancelotti’s numbers with the National Team

World Cup groups defined

Last Friday, FIFA drew the groups for the 2026 World Cup. Brazil was drawn into Group C, alongside Morocco, Haiti, and Scotland. The Canarinho’s matches will be on June 13 (Saturday), 19 (Friday), and 24 (Wednesday). The full schedule, with times and venues, will be released by FIFA only this Saturday at 2 p.m. (Brasília time).

The 2026 World Cup will be played between June and July, in three different countries: the United States, Mexico, and Canada.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇧🇷 here.