Carlo Ancelotti has been confirmed as the new Everton manager on a four-and-a-half-year contract a fortnight after being sacked by Napoli.
The three-time Champions League winner succeeds Marco Silva, who was sacked after defeat in the Merseyside derby left the club in the relegation zone, and is attracted by the proposition of revitalising Everton as a long-term project.
Ancelotti has been keen to return to the Premier League since leaving Chelsea, where he won the double in 2010, before spells with Paris Saint-Germain, Real Madrid, Bayern Munich and Napoli.
Everton majority shareholder Farhad Moshiri led the club’s pursuit of the 60-year-old, who will take charge of a club not considered one of Europe’s ‘elite’ for the first time since leaving Parma for Juventus three decades ago.
Everton are currently sitting in 16th in the table after caretaker manager Duncan Ferguson led the club to victory against Chelsea and a draw with Manchester United before suffering his first defeat as caretaker manager, albeit on penalties, against Leicester in the Carabao Cup.
Ancelotti will be in the stands to watch his new team take on Arsenal at Goodison Park on Saturday, with Ferguson taking the team for one final time. Arsenal are in the same position, having appointed Mikel Arteta as new manager on Friday, and Arteta will also be watching on.
“This is a great club with a rich history and a very passionate fan base,” he told the club website. “There is a clear vision from the Owner and the Board to deliver success and trophies. That is something that appeals to me as a manager and I am thrilled at the prospect of being able to work with everybody at the Club to help make that vision a reality.
“I have seen from the performances in the last two weeks that the players are capable of so much. The work Duncan has done is a great credit to him.”
