Los Angeles FC defender Giorgio Chiellini could see the power of two of Europe’s biggest clubs and two of Italy’s greatest coaches.
Chiellini would have liked to have been trained by Ancelotti
After witnessing Real Madrid beat his former club Juventus, Los Angeles FC defender Giorgio Chiellini could see the power of two of Europe’s biggest clubs and two of Italy’s greatest coaches. After the pre-season match, he reflected on Real Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti and his performance at the club since returning last summer. “The results talk for him; he’s a perfect guy,” Chiellini told reporters. “I am sad because I would have liked to have been trained by him because he is one of the best in history and one of the best of the last 30 years for sure. At a club like Real Madrid, the coach doesn’t have to teach many things, you have fantastic players, and you have to keep the group in the best way possible.”
According to Giorgio, Real have an excellent defence and a different one
“You saw in the last games, Marcelo and Toni Kroos are on the bench talking to Carlo like old friends. You see what Carlo can do, and I’m fascinated by it.” The Italian is someone who knows what it takes to build a strong defence and also revealed his admiration for the Real Madrid back line. “I cannot say the best in the world, but they have an excellent defence and a different one,” he said. “I also think Nacho, he has improved a lot in recent years; he’s fantastic. In the beginning, many people didn’t consider him a good player. Still, instead, I can link his name to David Alaba, Eder Militao or Antonio Rudiger because when he plays, he’s fantastic and makes a big difference.”
According to the defender, Spain surprised Italy with the high pressure at the Euros
“Real Madrid have these players all over the pitch, defence, midfield, attack too, they are all fantastic. It’s a huge club who deserved to win all the Champions Leagues in the last years.” Chiellini also looked back to last summer and the 2020 European Championship, where he highlighted the semi-final clash with Spain as a game which proved that the Spanish side are contenders for the 2022 World Cup. “I think it was the only game where we didn’t deserve to win; we were maybe a little bit lucky,” he remembered. “Spain surprised us with the high pressure, a lot of pressure, all the possession, defensively they were so good and the choice of Luis Enrique to take out all the strikers which surprised us.”
That included one particular moment when Chiellini embraced and laughed with Spain captain Jordi Alba ahead of the shootout. “It was a misunderstanding; the referee said, ‘red is there, and blue is there’. Last year we played in pre-season, and I hugged him; he’s a good guy.” Chiellini now lines up alongside Gareth Bale for LAFC, having made his debut for the club earlier this month.