‘An incredible man’: how Carlo Ancelotti has turned Brazil into potential World Cup winners

Brazil arrived at the World Cup with several open wounds. Since Qatar in 2022 there were four changes of manager, 95 players called up and a political crisis, including the ousting of the Brazilian Football Confederation (CBF) president. It has been a big mess, with many uncertainties, and the mood among the fans was one of pessimism. But then Carlo Ancelotti arrived. Gradually under the Italian, the team has taken shape and transformed its relationship with fans, who are again dreaming of a sixth World Cup after 24 years without one, the longest such drought alongside the period between 1970 and 1994.

Ancelotti has become a shield for the players. Even the most experienced ones, such as Alisson, Danilo, Marquinhos and Casemiro, feel more at ease having such a great figure on the bench, the most successful manager in the Champions League, with five titles.

“It’s undeniable that this World Cup cycle has been very difficult for us players,” says Alisson, who is playing in his third World Cup. “We’ve experienced all these difficulties first-hand. But since Ancelotti’s arrival, the atmosphere has been transformed. He gives us the peace of mind that comes from an environment focused on work, without having to worry about controversies or other issues”.

“Our team wasn’t in great form, but Ancelotti made the necessary changes,” says Marquinhos. “He’s very smart. He knows how to get the best out of the players he has and help them improve. He managed to change our mindset and created a philosophy centred on wellbeing.”

The last-32 victory over Japan was another wound Ancelotti managed to heal. In the recent past, conceding a goal in the first half would have been a blow that knocked Brazil off balance. Indeed since 2023, Brazil had conceded the first goal of a match on 12 occasions, losing seven of those, drawing four and winning just once. That was against Chile in a World Cup qualifier in October 2024.

The blow of Keishu Sano’s goal was, therefore, a heavy one. Brazil’s unease was plain to see. But Ancelotti turned the atmosphere around. He made the most of the half-time break and spoke to the players in a way that surprised everyone in the dressing room.

“Ancelotti is an incredible man,” Gabriel Martinelli, who scored the winning goal against Japan, told CazeTV. “It’s easy to understand why he has won everything he has ever competed for. He gave us a lot of confidence. He said we were going to equalise and then win, that we had to believe in ourselves. You can see from his body language just how calm he is. He passes that confidence on to us”.

Ancelotti has not been afraid to make important decisions, such as leaving Neymar out of the starting XI. The 34-year-old is not the player he once was, nor is he fully fit. But other, less experienced managers would not have cared about that; they would still have picked Neymar plus 10 other players. Under Ancelotti, however, Neymar has played only 14 minutes at this World Cup, against Scotland, and did not feature against Japan. Neymar, in turn, has understood his role in the squad. He knows he is no longer Brazil’s star player. That status now belongs to Vinícius Júnior.

Ancelotti’s man-management always made him the perfect coach for the Seleção, and he has always emphasised that Brazil have no lack of talent, but that alone is not enough to win a World Cup. For this reason, in addition to his assistants Paul Clement, Francesco Mauri and his son Davide Ancelotti, he draws on the expertise of Marisa Santiago, the first psychologist to be part of Brazil’s coaching staff at a World Cup. Ancelotti speaks to Santiago daily and asks for advice on ways to work on the players’ mental game. She has also been talking to the players and helping Ancelotti in his efforts to create the best possible atmosphere.

Against Norway Ancelotti faces the task of healing the deepest wound of all. Since 2002, when they beat Germany in the final in Yokohama, Brazil have failed to beat a European side in a World Cup knockout match. There have been defeats by France (2006), the Netherlands (2010), Germany (2014), Belgium (2018) and Croatia (2022). In addition to neutralising Erling Haaland, Ancelotti will have to again work on the mental side of the Brazilian team to ensure the nightmares of the last five World Cups do not come back to haunt them.

If Brazil win on Sunday, they may still not be considered by many to be among the top favourites to win the World Cup, but they may well be seen in a new light, with people believing that it is indeed possible for them to finally end their long wait for the biggest prize of all.

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