Ancelotti: fight over Bale's "selfishness" led to Madrid exit

Napoli coach Carlo Ancelotti has given an interview to Italian daily Il Napolista, in which he recalled his time as coach of Real Madrid, and particularly an argument he had with President Florentino Pérez in Valencia’s Mestalla stadium.

The former Madrid manager explained that the argument, which centred around Gareth Bale’s perceived selfishness, was the catalyst that led to his eventual exit from the Bernabéu.

“If there is something that drives me crazy, it is selfishness. When a player has to pass the ball and does not pass it,” said the Italian.

“I paid it for in the first person. At Madrid, I took off Bale in a game against Valencia. I had to pass the ball to Benzema, who would have scored into an empty goal, but instead of that, he shot (and missed). It was the reason that triggered an argument with Florentino, I took him off and the mess began there.”

Ancelotti also spoke about Los Blancos’ rivals Atlético Madrid, praising their style of football, which he believes is similar to that of Napoli.

"Atlético don’t play badly, they make you play badly. They are very well organized and over time they have improved. Now they play more football, they look for a lot of substance and little aesthetic.”

But he went on to add that it is essential that a coach to always try to bring out the quality of the game: "The quality of the game is always worth looking for, as it must be supported by many other factors such as determination, personality and responsibility that you must assume. I would like to see a Naploli like that.”