After Napoli parted ways with Carlo Ancelotti in December 2019, Everton jumped at the opportunity to appoint him as their new manager later that month.
He was with the Merseyside club for 18 months before leaving them for Real Madrid in June 2021. The La Liga side’s approach was tempting for the manager, who made an effort to return to Madrid, where he managed for two seasons between 2013 and 2015.
In his only summer transfer window at Goodison Park in 2020, the ex-Chelsea boss was given several new players by Everton, including two of his former players, James Rodríguez and Allan.
Abdoulaye Doucouré was another signing, and he joined the Premier League side from Watford. The midfielder has given an interview to L’Equipe, where he revealed his signing was not initially requested by Ancelotti.
“He is the most human coach I have met. He was also very honest. When I arrived, he explained to me that he did not particularly want me at the beginning but that the leaders had ended up convincing him,” Doucouré said.
“My first day in training coincided with the day before a match. Carlo comes to see me on the field and says to me: ‘So, Abdou, do you want to play tomorrow?’ I say yes, of course,” the midfielder explained.
“He said to me, a little mockingly: ‘Well, we’ll see if you’re training well’, and he left, laughing. I knew then that I was going to play and I did not want to disappoint him. He reassured me, freed me. He was one of the men who changed my game.
“Carlo had invited us to dinner at the restaurant, me, Allan and James, the three recruits, with our agents. We had spent a warm, relaxed time, talking about everything, football, 
but also our lives, until 1 or 2 in the morning. I had never experienced that in my career.”
Doucouré also revealed how Ancelotti maintained a positive atmosphere within the squad.
“Sometimes the day after a game that I lost, I could not be very well. He detected it on my face,” Doucouré stressed.
“So, on the field, he came to see me and said: ‘You had a good game, Abdou’. I knew that I had made a poor match but he looked me in the eye and insisted: ‘You did what I asked you’. He wants you to be in a permanently positive state of mind, happy to do your job.”
