'There's a lot of sweating'

PARIS • Even Carlo Ancelotti, the calm and carefree Italian, whose return to Real Madrid has been as harmonious as it has been successful, will get the jitters before today's Champions League final against Liverpool.

No manager has reached as many Champions League finals as Ancelotti's five. He won two of his previous three title-deciders with AC Milan - the first was in 2003. The last time he won the trophy was with Real in 2014.

Already the first coach to win the European Cup three times with two different clubs, he is on the verge of leapfrogging Bob Paisley and Zinedine Zidane to become the first to win it four times.

But experience has not made the build-up to the biggest game of the European season any easier.

"The most stressful moment is always in the three or four hours before the game. It's a physical thing and I've struggled with it a bit more this season," Ancelotti said ahead of the final in Paris.

"There is a lot of sweating, the heart beats faster and those negative thoughts creep in. Believe me, there is no tablet or medicine you can take. You just have to put up with it.

"For now, it's about enjoying it. We are calm, they are calm. Everyone is happy, there is a good atmosphere. As we get closer to the match, there will be all the other things, some nerves, which is all very normal. Today, it's just about really looking forward to playing in another final."

Ancelotti's ability to manage and motivate players means that his tactical nous perhaps gets overlooked.

Real won La Liga with four games to spare, finishing 13 points ahead of Barcelona. After arriving last summer, Ancelotti revamped their defence, which had been ripped apart after the exits of Sergio Ramos and Raphael Varane.

He found a way of playing that finally unleashed Vinicius Jr, who for all his raw talent had been frustratingly inconsistent.

The Brazilian forward has reaped the rewards, enjoying his most prolific season yet with 21 goals in all competitions.

Real now play deeper than in the past, which suits Vinicius and Karim Benzema on the break, and protects their classy but ageing midfield.

"(Jurgen) Klopp and (Thomas) Tuchel, the German school of tactics, they have brought more intensity in recent years," Ancelotti said. "I don't think I'm from an older generation, I watch the changes in football, what is happening and what will happen next.

"But the most important thing is the characteristics of the players you have. It's about what's in front of you, not what's in your head. You can't press with a striker who is fat."

Yet Real's success this season has come less from the system or the style than Ancelotti's connection with the players. Every controversy has come and gone, the player and team always put ahead of his own ego and reputation.

Even the sidelining of Eden Hazard and Gareth Bale has happened without fuss.

"That describes perfectly the manager he is and why he works so well with this team," Real midfielder Toni Kroos said.

Ancelotti's second stint at Real has been as steady as his first from 2013-15 with a record-extending 14th European Cup in sight.

As the former Milan and Everton boss, he also does not need any more reason to deny the Reds.

"Playing a final with them is something special. They have won six Champions Leagues, and if they reach seven, they would go level with Milan, so I have extra motivation to win this final," he said. "I lived in Liverpool for two years and it is like a derby for me because I am still an Evertonian."

AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE, REUTERS