Former Milan boss Ancelotti hints at Serie A return, refuses to rule out Juve

Carlo Ancelotti said he is interested in a return to Serie A amid links to former club AC Milan, while he refused to rule out Italian champions Juventus.

Ancelotti has been out of a job since he was sacked by Bundesliga holders Bayern Munich in September.

The Italian boss was heavily linked with Milan before the club surprisingly turned to fan favourite Gennaro Gattuso following the dismissal of head coach Vincenzo Montella amid their below-par start to the season.

Ancelotti has also been earmarked as the favourite to replace Gian Piero Ventura following Italy's failure to qualify for the World Cup for the first time since 1958.

But the 58-year-old, who confirmed talks with the Italian Football Federation (FIGC), wants to remain involved in club football.

"Over the last few months I've been linked to all sorts, like Croatia, Saudi Arabia, China, Milan. I have never spoken to the new Milan directors," Ancelotti told La Domenica Sportiva.

"I will say that Serie A is curiously the most interesting in Europe right now, as there is a lot of competition, unlike in France."

Asked about a potential return to Juventus, where he took the reins from 1999 to 2001, Ancelotti added: "Everyone knows what my past was, so I don't want to go against my past. I am fond of [Juventus president] Andrea Agnelli, as he was just a kid when I was there. As I said, I don't go against my past."

Ancelotti did have advice for Gattuso, who was unable to inspire Milan in his first match in charge on Sunday, held to a 2-2 draw by lowly Benevento.

Milan, who finished with 10 men, were denied after a remarkable injury-time equaliser from Benevento goalkeeper Alberto Brignoli.

"Coaches are there to blame when something doesn't work. I will tell Gattuso one thing: it is better to go down clinging to your ideas than to sink with the ideas of others," said Ancelotti, who coached Gattuso during his successful tenure at San Siro which yielded eight titles, including two Champions League crowns.

"Whatever decision you make, if the club doesn't protect you, then you are dead. If you drop a player, he goes to the club to complain and they back him, you'll lose face with the other players. You can't recover from that. According to the media, I was fired by Bayern because I had five big players against me."