Football
ESPN staff 7y

Ancelotti: Bayern Munich didn't 'need a revolution' after Guardiola's exit

Carlo Ancelotti says there was no need for a major overhaul when he replaced Pep Guardiola as Bayern Munich manager last year.

In an exclusive interview, Ancelotti told ESPN FC's Gab Marcotti that he sought to continue the work of his predecessor, who was in charge at the Allianz Arena for three seasons, while also trying to "to put some new ideas."

"I found a fantastic club, first of all, and a team with good knowledge," Ancelotti said. "I think the experience they had with Guardiola helped them to be strong in possession, to be strong in transition.

"So I found a team with a lot of quality. I didn't want to do a revolution, because the team doesn't need a revolution. I want to follow the line that Guardiola put in the last three years and try to do some changes; maybe to play more vertical, play with possession."

At the winter break of Ancleotti's first season in Germany, Bayern lead the Bundesliga by three points, having beaten second-placed RB Leipzig 3-0 in their final game of 2016.

"It was an important game for a lot of reasons, because until there, we didn't play so well," Ancelotti said. "Against Leipzig was the first game where we played really well. And after that, we played against a strong team that likely did really well until now. And they were in second position. But the game, we played really well, so this gives us more confidence for the future."

Bayern have won four straight German league titles and Ancelotti inherited a squad packed with experience. Despite their past successes, though, the new manager has no concern regarding complacency.  

"When you speak about a professional player, it means to speak about a player that has all the time -- the game -- to be back now every single day, to be focused every single training, to try to win every single year," Ancelotti said. "To motivate this kind of player is really, really easy, because they have the quality to be at the top also mentally."

Ancelotti arrived at Bayern after a season off, having left Real Madrid in 2015. Prior to his two seasons in Spain, the 57-year-old Italian managed Paris Saint-Germain, Chelsea, Milan, Juventus, Parma and Reggiana. He admits that his experience across Europe comes in handy when dealing with his current squad.

"Lots of languages! I try to explain the training session in German," Ancelotti said. "German is a really difficult language for [Latin people], because the grammar is totally different. I try to explain the training session in German, then I speak in English. With some players I can speak Spanish. And with some players, like [Arturo] Vidal, [Franck] Ribery, Rafinha, [Kingsley] Coman, they can speak Italian. I mix. Every day is a good lesson to improve your language."

Bayern, who are currently holding a training camp in Qatar, return to Bundesliga action on Jan. 20 when they visit Freiburg.

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