Everton set to confirm Ancelotti’s arrival

Carlo Ancelotti’s appointment at Everton is expected to be completed this week, with the Italian still finalising the details of his departure from Napoli last week, having agreed terms with his new club in preparation to get started as soon as possible.

Ancelotti returned to Italy from London yesterday with talks completed, the terms of his Everton contract agreed and with an announcement expected over the next two days.

The club’s caretaker manager, Duncan Ferguson, took charge of the Carabao Cup quarter-final against Leicester City last night and he may well be called upon to do one more game, in his interim role, at home to Arsenal on Saturday, before handing over the reins.

In that scenario, Ancelotti is likely to start work as Everton manager on Monday, with his first game at home to Burnley on Boxing Day.

Closing in: Everton should announce Carlo Ancelotti as their manager over the next two days

He has already met senior figures at the club and has agreed his staff list. That is likely to include his son Davide, fitness trainer and coach Francesco Mauri and Ancelotti’s son-in-law, nutritionist Mino Fulco, who has worked with him at previous clubs Bayern Munich, Real Madrid and Napoli.

The negotiations with Napoli are not expected to pose a major obstacle to Ancelotti’s appointment by the end of the week. He has already been replaced by Gennaro Gattuso.

Napoli president Aurelio De Laurentiis has retained a good relationship with Ancelotti despite the latter’s dismissal, saying at the club’s recent Christmas party that he first met Gattuso at a birthday party for his predecessor.

Ancelotti, who is expected to sign a deal to keep him at the club until 2024, has been given assurances that he will be able to make changes to his squad in the next transfer windows and that Everton’s owner, Farhad Moshiri, continues to have ambitions of breaking into the top six.