Florentine ventriloquist: how to kick Ancelotti out without opening his mouth and make it seem like he's leaving

"Starting May 26, I'm the Brazil national team coach," explained Carlo Ancelotti on the eve of his penultimate seat in the Santiago Bernabéu dugout, after the Brazilian Football Confederation (CBF) announced his signing last Monday. It was a surprising announcement, not because of its content, but because of its timing. Under other circumstances, Real Madrid would never have allowed it, but it's clear that Florentino Pérez was also interested.

CBF President Ednaldo Rodrigues was not only facing a difficult institutional situation in sports after Brazil's humiliating 4-1 defeat to Argentina , which cost his last coach, Dorival Júnior , his job, but also an institutional one. In fact, this Thursday he was dismissed by the Rio de Janeiro Court of Justice due to administrative irregularities. That's why he took advantage of Madrid's defeat to FC Barcelona to announce the signing of Ancelotti.

Of course, just as Rodrigues needed to publicize the arrival of the coach with more Champions League titles than anyone else , five, as many as Brazil has World Cups, Pérez was given the opportunity to pretend that it was Ancelotti who was leaving, since it was the best way out he could have had, and not him who was actually sacking him. That is, without Madrid needing to dismiss him , since the Italian still had one more year on his contract and the current one didn't end until June 30.

"Madrid will release the statement whenever they want, there's no problem," explained Carletto . In this way, the Italian verified what the president of the CBF said, who assured that the first contact "was not directly with the coach," but with his club. In addition, the agreement "was closed about 20 days ago," although everything was pending Ancelotti being allowed to terminate his contract before the Club World Cup , where his replacement will finally be playing. Xabi Alonso .

From Brazil they speak of "a leak"

Real Madrid, and more specifically its plenipotentiary president, doesn't need to say anything to get what it wants across to the public . Like a ventriloquist, he doesn't open his mouth, and others say what he wants them to say . This explains why Rodrigues stated that, although it had been agreed to wait to announce Ancelotti's signing until this Friday, that is, once Barça had won the league, "there was a leak."

"Neither the CBF nor the coach wanted to continue denying it, saying there wasn't this or that. There was no way around it anymore," added Rodrigues, replaced by a court-appointed receiver, whose first decision was to reaffirm Ancelotti as coach until the 2026 World Cup, with a net salary of 10 million euros, plus a bonus of 5 million euros in the event of winning the coveted sixth championship.

And the current Real Madrid manager already said this when asked on the eve of the match against RCD Mallorca if the club was aware of his move to Brazil. " They'll set their own pace. There's nothing more to add . What I discuss with the club is entirely personal," the Italian added, without revealing Tinín , as Florentino's friends call him.

Remember Lopetegui's signing for Real Madrid when he was the Spanish national team coach? Although the then president of the Royal Spanish Football Federation (RFEF), Luis Rubiales , acted offended and sacked him two days before the start of the World Cup, having congratulated Julen himself a day earlier, no one doubts that the besieged Ednaldo Rodrigues asked José Ángel Sánchez , Florentino's right-hand man, for permission, to whom he actually expressed his gratitude.

For many years, Real Madrid's communications department has been relying on leak journalism , precisely the word used by the president of the CBF. This type of investigative journalism is based on the dissemination of information from third parties seeking to make it public. It involves a complex relationship between the leaker and the journalist , where both have specific interests.

Although ethically and deontologically reprehensible , it is a sly way of communicating, mixing silence and leaks, so that, as has happened on occasion, if things do not go as intended, they can always say in a nasal voice that "nobody in Madrid" .

This already happened, for example, with the departure of Xabi Alonso , who is now returning as coach. A departure that will require further discussion, and which the ventriloquist Florentino Perez provoked and disguised through his puppets.