Cristiano Ronaldo has urged Real Madrid not to sack manager Carlo Ancelotti.
The Italian has been widely predicted to leave the Bernabeu at the end of the season after the club came up short in both La Liga and the Uefa Champions League.
Reports have named Napoli manager Rafa Benitez as his likely replacement.
But Ronaldo, who scored his eighth hat-trick of the season as Madrid crushed Getafe 7-3 on Saturday, said he wanted to continue working with Ancelotti.
Madrid’s star man posted a picture of the pair together on Twitter, accompanied by the message: “Great coach and amazing person. Hope we work together next season.”
Real Madrid coach Ancelotti said he will take a year out if he is dismissed by the Spanish giants after failing to win a major trophy this season.
Reports in the Spanish press have claimed that the Italian is on the way out just a year after delivering Madrid’s 10th European Cup.
“My future is clear in my head,” Ancelotti said.
“I will continue here at Real Madrid or I will stop for a year.”
And the former AC Milan, Chelsea and Paris Saint-Germain manager expects a decision on his future to be taken early next week.
“I think we are going to meet next week to clarify the future of the club,” he said.
“This is football, especially at a club like Real Madrid it is normal to be questioned after part of the season didn’t go well.
“It is part of my job. Last season we won the 10th European Cup and this year is a different story. I won’t forget what we did last year or what happened this year. You have to consider everything.
“We have to evaluate calmly what happened this season and try to improve for next season.
“I want to stay. If the club says I can’t continue I won’t be happy but these things have happened many times in football, it is not the first time. It happened to me at Juventus, Chelsea, at PSG I asked to leave.
“I don’t think it will be the last time because I have desire to coach. It could be that I get sacked another time.
“I continue to have confidence in my ability because I like to coach.”
In Saturday’s victory, 16-year-old Norwegian Martin Odegaard also became the youngest player to represent Real Madrid in La Liga when he made his debut as a second-half substitute against Getafe.
Odegaard replaced Ronaldo after the Portuguese had already notched his 31st hat-trick for the club with Madrid leading 5-3.
Madrid beat off stiff competition from around Europe to land Odegaard in January, but he has spent the majority of the five months since playing with Real’s reserve team Castilla under the orders of French legend Zinedine Zidane.
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