Carlo Ancelotti

Carlo Ancelotti (born June 10, 1959 in Reggiolo) is a former footballer and current coach of Serie A club A.C. Milan. He is currently the longest-tenured manager in Serie A, having been with Milan since November 2001. With numerous titles, notably two UEFA Champions League trophies and the prestigious Scudetto, won under his reign, he is arguably one of the most successful Rossoneri coaches of all time.
On September 11, 2007, Ancelotti was named the 2007 ESM European Coach of the Year.

Playing career
As a player, "Carletto" appeared 26 times for Italy, and played in the 1990 FIFA World Cup. He started his club career in 1976 with Parma A.C.. In 1979, he transferred to AS Roma, as captain and midfielder, where he won the Italian championship and 4 times the Italian Cup. From 1987 until 1992 he played for A.C. Milan, and was part of the legendary Milan squad that won consecutive Champion Clubs' Cups in 1989 and 1990.

Coaching career

Ancelotti's first coaching job was with Serie B squad A.C. Reggiana 1919 in 1995. In his only year with the club, Reggiana earned promotion to Serie A. Ancelotti then returned to Parma - which included upstart goalkeeper Gigi Buffon and current Milan goalkeeping trainer Villiam Vecchi - in 1996, and won the 1998-99 UEFA Cup. He became the successor of Marcello Lippi at Juventus the next season, but went trophyless during his two-year stint, finishing runner-up twice in Serie A. That all changed when he went to AC Milan in 2001 as a replacement for the fired Fatih Terim.

He was inheriting another recently trophyless team in Milan, as the Rossoneri had foundered domestically and in Europe since their last Scudetto victory in 1999. In his first full season, Ancelotti soon had Milan back in European competition, leading them to the semi-finals of the 2001-02 UEFA Cup, in which Milan finished third. The following season, Ancelotti, who was heavily criticized by club president Silvio Berlusconi due to his defensive tactics, was able to adopt a creative play in Milan while making several roster changes. He made Dida, still maligned for his 2000 Champions League howler against Leeds United, his new starting goalkeeper barely a month into the 2002-03 campaign, while converting budding striker Andrea Pirlo to a defensive playmaker and playing him alongside Manuel Rui Costa. At the same time, the striking partners of Filippo Inzaghi and Andriy Shevchenko were dominant and dynamic. Milan won the Champions League, beating Ancelotti's old team, Juventus, 3-2 on penalties at Old Trafford, and took home the Scudetto and Coppa Italia in 2004.

Under Ancelotti's reign, Milan were also back-to-back Serie A runners-up to Juventus in 2004-05 and 05-06 (both Scudetti were later wiped from the record books due to Juventus' involvement in the Calciopoli scandal), and lost the 2005 CL final in horrific fashion to Liverpool F.C., in which Milan lost 3-2 on penalties after blowing a 3-0 halftime lead. Two years later, though, Milan avenged their defeat to Liverpool with a 2-1 win at the Olympic Stadium in Athens on May 23, 2007, leading to Ancelotti's second Champions League trophy as Milan coach and his fourth title overall, having also won it twice as a Milan player in 1989 and 1990. On May 30, Ancelotti signed a two-year contract extension, keeping him at Milan until 2010.

Ancelotti is only the fifth coach to win the Champions League as both a player and a coach, along with Miguel Muñoz (Real Madrid player 1956, 1957, Real Madrid coach 1960, 1966); Giovanni Trapattoni (AC Milan player 1963, 1969, Juventus coach 1985); Johan Cruyff (AFC Ajax player 1971-73, FC Barcelona coach 1992) and former Milan teammate Frank Rijkaard (AC Milan player 1989, 1990, Ajax player 1995, FC Barcelona coach 2006). He also ranks second in number of Milan matches coached with 322, trailing Nereo Rocco (459).

He has often expressed interest in coaching Italy after his Milan contract expires in 2010.

Trivia

* Current Inter Milan coach Roberto Mancini was among Ancelotti's teammates during the 1990 World Cup.
* One of his hobbies is singing. He often performs at team parties and functions, including Milan's Champions League celebration at the San Siro on May 25, 2007.