Carlo Ancelotti's job at Real Madrid could be on the line at Club World Cup

• Madrid have struggled post World Cup break
• Went down to Mallorca in a recent meeting
• Pressure mounts on Ancelotti to deliver

WHAT HAPPENED? Real Madrid have struggled to find their rhythm since the resumption of club football after the World Cup break. Ancelotti's men were lacklustre in their 3-1 Clasico defeat to Barcelona in the Spanish Super Cup final, and suffered a 1-0 loss against Mallorca in La Liga at the weekend which has left them trailing the Blaugrana by eight points in the table.

THE BIGGER PICTURE: Real Madrid travel to Morocco to participate in the Club World Cup this week, by virtue of winning the Champions League in 2021-22, and failure to lift the trophy could see Ancelotti leave Santiago Bernabeu, according to a report from Spanish outlet Relevo.

AND WHAT'S MORE: Ancelotti is well aware that his achievements of the previous season, winning La Liga and Champions League, will not lend him the remainder of the current campaign to turn things around. Madrid have looked out of sorts in most matches and relied on comebacks and individual brilliance to win crunch fixtures against Atletico Madrid in the Copa del Rey and Villarreal in the league. However, injuries to several key players like Karim Benzema, David Alaba, Ferland Mendy and Daniel Carvajal have forced the coach to work with makeshift options. In the absence of recognised full-backs, Ancelotti has used Eduardo Camavinga at left-back and Nacho in a right-back position.

IN TWO PHOTOS:

Getty

Getty

Getty Images

WHAT NEXT? Ancelotti will get the opportunity to prove his doubters wrong when Real Madrid face Al Ahly in the Club World Cup semi-finals on Wednesday.