Bayern Munich manager, Carlo Ancelotti has backed his trusted former assistant, Paul Clement to flourish in his new role as Swansea City manager as he believes he "absolutely" has the right "skills" and "quality" to be a "top manager."
Backing from Ancelotti
It is clear that Clement's mentor thinks highly of him, having taken Clement with him to several clubs such as Munich, Real Madrid and Chelsea, the club where they originally met, which shows he has a serious trust in his abilities. However, whilst that it is obvious Clement is a trusted friend, losing him as an assistant will be a blow to the experienced coach, but he accepts that "at some point" someone as talented as Clement would want to be a "manager" and "above all in the Premier League."
Even though Swansea are currently facing a relegation battle, Ancelotti is confident he made the "right decision" to move to the Liberty Stadium to begin his new challenge and was adamant that although they have worked together a lot, Clement is not a carbon copy. Ancelotti told ESPN that his former assistant has a "different personality" and is "less quiet" than himself as well as having "strong motivation."
The Munich manager believes that Clement is very "focused" and is "thinking about his job 24 hours a day," which is something that the Welsh outfit may need in order to survive this season. With that said, it is inevitable that Clement will have picked up some tips, tricks, and traits from his mentor over the years, all of which are likely to be welcomed at Swansea when you consider Ancelotti's pedigree as a coach and getting such high praise from him is a real compliment.
Ancelotti stated that the pair had a "really good time together" and that they "won a lot," but now is the chance for Clement to prove himself and stand on his own two feet in what is a very different world from that of title-chasing European giants.