Lula says Brazil has 'capable' coaches, reacting to Ancelotti hire
Real Madrid's Italian coach Carlo Ancelotti holds their 36th La Liga trophy as Real Madrid players parade onboard a bus to celebrate at the Cibeles square in Madrid on May 12, 2024. Real Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti will leave the club at the end of the season to take charge of the Brazil national team, the Brazilian Football Confederation announced on May 12, 2025. (Photo by OSCAR DEL POZO / AFP)
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Italian Ancelotti on Monday became the first non-Brazilian since 1965 to take the reins of Brazil's national team, which he is hoping to lead to World Cup glory next year.
"Honestly, I have nothing against him being a foreigner... What I think is that we have coaches in Brazil capable of leading the Selecao," Lula told journalists in China, according to a video circulated in Brazilian media.
A football enthusiast, Lula had expressed skepticism in the past about the potential appointment of Ancelotti, which had been on the cards for years.
"He has never been Italy's national coach... Why does he not resolve the problems of Italy, which did not even qualify for the 2022 World Cup?" the president said in 2023.
On Tuesday, he described Ancelotti as a "great technician" and said he hoped the Italian "can help the Brazilian team, first to qualify for the World Cup, and then, if possible, to win it."
The Selecao is placed fourth in the qualifying phase for the 2026 World Cup that will be hosted by the United States, Canada and Mexico.
It has 21 points from 14 matches, less than Ecuador, Uruguay and world champions Argentina.
The top six Latin American teams will qualify for the 2026 event.
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