Real Madrid have appointed their former midfielder Xabi Alonso as manager on a three-year deal. Alonso, who made 236 appearances for Real Madrid as a player, announced earlier this month that he would leave his role as Bayer Leverkusen boss at the end of the season. Former Liverpool and Spain midfielder Alonso, who has signed a deal running until 30 June 2028, succeeds Carlo Ancelotti.
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Hansi Flick has been rewarded for an outstanding first campaign with Barcelona by signing a contract extension until 2027. Flick, a treble-winning coach with Bayern Munich who signed for the club last year on a two-year deal, arrived in Barcelona eager to redeem himself after he was sacked by Germany in September 2023. The German was appointed as head coach prior to the 2024-25 season and has been rewarded for a campaign that has yield LaLiga, Copa del Rey and Supercopa de Espana success.
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Francesco Farioli has stepped down as Ajax head coach after only a year in charge of the Amsterdam club. Farioli was visibly emotional following his sides 2-0 win over Twente on Sunday which was not enough to win clinch Eredivisie title for the Amsterdam side. Ajax had a nine point lead at one point but their form in April and May saw the title slip from their hands. The 36 year old Italian had signed a three year deal last summer but has cited differences with the club as the reason for this premature departure.
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Carlo Ancelotti has been confirmed as the new manager of Brazil’s men’s national team, the first foreign national to take sole charge of the world’s most successful side since 1925. After months of speculation, it has been confirmed that the 65-year-old Italian is to leave Real Madrid at the end of the Spanish domestic season to take up what will be his first international coaching role. The Brazilian Football Confederation (CBF) revealed the news in a statement on Monday, welcoming Ancelotti, a man they described as a “legend” of the game.
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Marcus Rashford is expected to miss the rest of Aston Villa’s season because of the hamstring injury that forced him out of their FA Cup semi-final defeat by Crystal Palace on Saturday. The on-loan England forward will have a scan but is not thought to require surgery. There is a slim possibility Rashford, whose injury rehabilitation will take place at Villa, could return to face Tottenham on 18 May.
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