Ancelotti shrugging off Guardiola´s shadow

Bayern Munich coach Carlo Ancelotti insists he does not feel like he is “working in Pep Guardiola’s shadow” after replacing the Spaniard as the man in charge at the Bundesliga champions.

Guardiola guided Bayern to three consecutive league titles during his time at the Allianz Arena, before opting to leave the club in favour of Manchester City.

Bayern consequently turned to Ancelotti, but the 57-year-old regularly gets questioned over his predecessor.

He is adamant that he does not feel any extra pressure to outdo Guardiola, though.

“Guardiola was a fantastic part of this club,” Ancelotti told Kicker.

“But I do not feel like I am working in his shadow.

“I just hope that the next Bayern coach will be asked about me as often as I get asked about Pep…”

Guardiola was sometimes criticised for his sterile style of play and Ancelotti has vowed to play attacking football with the German giants.

“The characteristics of our players make it possible to play attacking football,” he added.

“We have a lot of quality in attack and we can play some very intense football with all the fast players we have.”