Real Madrid will know in March if Carlo Ancelotti successor is available this summer | OneFootball

Over the last 12 months, speculation has regularly surrounded Carlo Ancelotti’s position as head coach of Real Madrid, especially with Xabi Alonso lurking in the background. The Italian is under contract until the summer of 2026, although there are chances for him to be moved on before then – especially if Los Blancos have a poor end to the season.

When the time comes for Ancelotti to leave, whether that be in 2025 or 2026, it is expected that Alonso will be his successor, despite links to former Rayo Vallecano manager Andoni Iraola earlier this week. The 43-year-old will be allowed to leave his position at Bayer Leverkusen if the position at the Santiago Bernabeu becomes available, although the reigning Bundesliga champions do want to be kept apprised of the situation ahead of time.

Like Ancelotti, Alonso sees his contract expire at the end of next season. As mentioned, Leverkusen will not stand in his way for this summer, but the situation is expected to be clarified by the end of March, as reported by Marca.

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At some stage in the month of March, Alonso is to meet with members of the Leverkusen hierarchy to establish his position for next season. Club officials want to know his thinking about his immediate future, as they would need to start making preparations for a possible successor if he were looking to leave in the summer.

This creates problems for Real Madrid, as there is very little chance that they will have made a decision on Ancelotti staying on for the final year of his contract by the time Alonso meets with Leverkusen bosses. As such, it perhaps points to the status quo remaining in effect for the planned period, with the two head coaches seeing out their respective contracts, at which point the Spaniard would go to the Bernabeu.