Lille head coach Davide Ancelotti has tipped Everton to have an impressive season in the Premier League. Ancelotti, son of former Everton manager Carlo Ancelotti, made the comments after his side secured a last-gasp draw against the Blues at Hill Dickinson Stadium on Saturday.
Return to Merseyside
Trailing to a first-half penalty from Iliman Ndiaye, Lille equalised through a stoppage-time goal by Hakon Haraldsson. Ancelotti, who worked as a fitness coach at Everton during his father's tenure at Goodison Park, was delighted to return to the club's new home on the Mersey waterfront.
The 37-year-old said after the 1-1 draw: "It's fantastic to be back at Everton. I came here in February to watch the game against Bournemouth and saw some good faces and good friends, it was really, really nice."
Praise for Moyes and the squad
Ancelotti also praised Everton's manager and squad. "Everton have a really experienced manager that will, I think, make the team win games," he said. "It is a team that has really good players, who are strong in duels and second balls. It is a team that is really competitive and knows how to win games, as they did last season and they will do this season, I'm sure."
He added: "I'm going now to see David Moyes. I bought him a good bottle of wine from France." Asked if it was one from his father's collection, Ancelotti said: "No, no, no. I do not have as much money as my father!"
Everton memories
Reflecting on his time at Everton, the Parma-born coach, who also worked under his father at Bayern Munich, Napoli, Real Madrid and the Brazil national team, said: "It's been a fantastic experience. I learned a lot. I created good relationships with everyone. With the staff, it's a real family environment, there is a lot of sense of belonging."
He added: "It's a really, really good club. For me, it's been a fantastic experience, even though we didn't have the fans (because of covid). We had the fans just for a few games. The fans made it special."
