The Italian coach was seen chatting privately with Vinicius during Brazil’s training camp in London, but Ancelotti later clarified that their conversation was purely personal and had no connection with tactics or positioning on the pitch.
Ancelotti’s strategy to get the best out of Vinicius
With Neymar once again unavailable due to recurring injuries, Brazil now rely on Vinicius as their main attacking asset. The winger has gained importance within the national team and benefits from Ancelotti’s appointment as head of Brazil, having already played under him at Real Madrid. Despite inconsistent performances at club level this season, Ancelotti believes in Vinicius’ progress and has encouraged him to adapt to a new centre-forward role in Neymar’s absence in order to maximize his output.
Ancelotti explained to Vinicius the differences between playing winger and playing center forward. He noted that as a dribbler, Vinicius often needs multiple touches of the ball to create a scoring opportunity, while as a striker, a single move can be enough to score. Ancelotti said:
“I see him either as a winger or as a central striker. Vinicius has the potential to score many goals. I told him: “When you play winger, you need three or four dribbles and seven or eight touches of the ball to score. But in the axis, a well-measured movement is enough. »
He understood and he enjoys playing in this position. »
Ancelotti returns to his discussion with Vinicius.
Recently, Ancelotti was spotted chatting privately with Vinicius during Brazil training in London.
At a press conference, Ancelotti explained that he speaks regularly with all his players because he wants to understand their point of view on all aspects of the game, including tactics. He declared: “I have to talk to everyone to understand the players’ thinking, including on a tactical level. You have to ask them, talk to them, find out what they think; it is essential.
“I’m not going to force a footballer to play a position he doesn’t want; I want him to play where he feels comfortable. With Vinícius this was not the case; that was another problem, more personal than tactical.”
He remains convinced that Vinícius can play alongside Rodrygo in the national team, as he did under Ancelotti at Real Madrid.
“Vinícius and Rodrygo are completely capable of it, because they are used to it, since they have already done it at Real Madrid,” he added. “I see them in good shape, focused, in good physical condition, and I am convinced that they can bring a lot to the national team. »
