Ancelotti, 'Trainer of Champions,' in Line for Deserved New Contract with Madrid

Carlo Ancelotti is the ideal manager at an important time for Real Madrid, and it seems the Primera Division giants are keen to keep him at the club for the foreseeable future.

On Monday, the 55-year-old revealed that negotiations over a new contract were ongoing, telling Italian newspaper La Repubblica, as per AS, that he and the Champions League winners were discussing a fresh pact.

"I have a contract until 2016 and we are talking about my renewal," he said.

It was an admission that took no one by surprise.

Since replacing the controversial and combustible Jose Mourinho at the start of last season, Ancelotti has turned Real Madrid into club football's premier powerhouse, a status that was underlined in May when Los Blancos won a 10th European Cup—the much-anticipated "La Decima."

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He has integrated big-money signings such as Gareth Bale, Toni Kroos and James Rodriguez into a squad that already boasted the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo, Karim Benzema and Luka Modric, and coming out of the weekend's 4-0 win away to Eibar, his side sits two points above archrival Barcelona in the Spanish top flight.

"I like being called the 'trainer of champions,'" he added. "But the true champions do not need trainers."

He sells himself short.

Under Mourinho, for example, the "galacticos" of Madrid often seemed to be living on the edge. Their run-ins with Barcelona deteriorated into violent wars of attrition, and conflict at board level led to director Jorge Valdano's exit in 2011.

"We are different," remarked Ancelotti when asked about his predecessor. "Each of us handles situations through the character we have. I only go to war if there is no way around it."

Incidentally, the former Juventus and AC Milan boss can equal Mourinho's club record of 15 successive victories (an achievement shared with Miguel Munoz, who accomplished the feat during the 1960-61 season) with a win against Basel on Wednesday, and three points at home to Malaga on Saturday would set the new mark.

During the current streak, which began after a 2-1 loss to Atletico Madrid in mid-Sepember, Real Madrid have outscored their opponents a combined 56-8, and with the Eibar result Ancelotti has chalked up 37 La Liga triumphs in just 50 games as manager.

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Ancelotti does the Ronaldo celebration!... http://t.co/FCCcquT0j2

— GeniusFootball (@GeniusFootball) November 24, 2014"

Where Mourinho went in search of a brawl, Ancelotti has sought only peace. In that, and given the unprecedented investment in players, he has proved to be the perfect fit for president Florentino Perez, who could be set to make him the longest-tenured Madrid coach in 40 years.

Not since Munoz, who spent 14 years in charge of the club, has a manager been given more than parts of four seasons at the Bernabeu.

Ancelotti will complete his third campaign with Madrid if he sees out his current contract, after which there could still be more time available for the former midfielder.

Manu Fernandez/Associated Press

According to Tomas Roncero of AS, the reported renewal will bind Madrid to Ancelotti until either 2017 or 2018, and earlier this month the five-time European champion (twice as a player; three times as a manager) told the outlet he "would like to finish" his career in the Spanish capital.

The admission was no doubt music to the ears of Perez and the club's administrators.

Of course, landscapes can change quickly in club football, and Madrid know this better than most.

But for now they have their man, and there's surely more success, and peace, to enjoy while he's in the job—however long that might be.

Follow @jerradpeters