Paul Merson believes Carlo Ancelotti lost interest in Everton amid ‘Impossible’ top-four hopes
Paul Merson believes Carlo Ancelotti simply lost interest in Everton before he exited the club for Real Madrid on Tuesday.
The Italian tactician swapped Merseyside for Madrid earlier this week in a rapid switch that took many supporters by surprise.
After stabilising the club upon his appointment in December 2019, Ancelotti led the Blues to a terrific start to the 2020/21 campaign where they topped the table in the early part.
However, their form nosedived and a run of just three wins from the final 12 Premier League games ensured European football would once again be absent from Goodison Park next season.
Writing in his Daily Star column, Sky Sports pundit Merson wasn’t shocked to see the manager leave at the end of the season.
“Carlo Ancelotti quitting Everton did not surprise me one bit,” he said. “He looked like he’d lost interest.
“And he’s not stupid. He would have seen the last few weeks that they are miles away.
“Ancelotti wants to manage a top-four club. He would have seen enough to realise that the top four is impossible for Everton right now.”
Impossible? Never
Anyone reading Merson’s comments could be forgiven for thinking he’s talking about a relegation-threatened club like Burnley or Brighton.
Why is it so impossible for us to be contenders for the Champions League positions in the coming years? We’ve certainly got the finances and infrastructure for such a development.
In fact, we only finished eight points behind the top-four, despite a horrendous end to the season.
Just imagine we had turned a few more draws into victories, like the Goodison Park clash with Crystal Palace in April when we conceded an 86th minute equaliser.
Or how about not losing against rock-bottom Sheffield United when they had nothing left to play for?
There’s a nucleus of a very good side, with the likes of Dominic Calvert-Lewin, Lucas Digne and Richarlison all highly sought-after internationals.
What we need now are some savvy signings and a manager that is going to inspire these players, as well as coach them into a cohesive unit that knows how to attack.
That’s something we didn’t see under Ancelotti, and who knows how far we can go if we find someone to bring us exactly that.
In other Everton news, Mike Parry launches stinging verbal attack on high-ranking Blues duo following Carlo Ancelotti’s exit.
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