will take charge of his 191st game as a manager in the tonight when take on in the .
His appearance on the Etihad touchline will see him break the record for the most games managed in Champions League history – edging past legend .
This is the second record the veteran Italian has taken off Ferguson this season, having broken his record for the most wins in the competition’s history earlier this campaign.
Let’s take a look at the pantheon of the Champions League’s greatest ever managers.
The managers with the most Champions League games
Ancelotti’s 191 games have come across spells with , AC Milan, , , , Bayern Munich and Napoli.
The 63 year-old has four Champions League titles to his name, two with AC Milan and two with Real Madrid, making him the .
Arguably the most iconic of Ancelotti’s quartet of victories was La Decima in 2014, guiding Real Madrid to their tenth European crown after a nine year wait.
Los Blancos were just seconds away from defeat against Atletico Madrid in Lisbon before Sergio Ramos popped up with an equaliser in the 93rd minute, with Real then scoring three goals in extra-time to wrap up a 4-1 win.
A second Champions League trophy with the Spanish giants was added last year courtesy of a 1-0 win over Liverpool in Paris.
But it hasn’t all been plain sailing for Ancelotti, with the most painful of his 191 games in charge surely the 2005 final defeat to Liverpool with AC Milan.
Most Champions League games as a manager
- Carlo Ancelotti – 191
- Sir Alex Ferguson – 190
- Arsene Wenger – 184
- Pep Guardiola – 158
- Jose Mourinho – 150
- Mircea Lucescu – 115
- Jurgen Klopp – 102
- Max Allegri – 100
- Louis Van Gaal – 95
- Rafael Benitez – 95
- Otmar Hitzfeld – 95
- Diego Simeone – 95
Dubbed the ‘Miracle of Istanbul’, Liverpool scored three second half goals to draw level from 3-0 down, before clinching the victory on penalties.
Milan did exact their revenge two years later in the final against Liverpool in Athens, which was Ancelotti’s second win in the competition after beating Juventus in 2003.
Ferguson’s 190 games in the Champions League saw him guide United to triumphs over Bayern Munich in 1999 – famously with an equaliser and then a winner in injury time – and in 2008 against Chelsea.
The Scot, who holds the record for the most games managed in the competition with the same club, was beaten in his last two Champions league finals against ’s legendary Barcelona side in 2009 and 2011.
Ferguson’s long-term rival is third on the all-time list with 184, with his runners-up spot with Arsenal in 2006 his best result.
Pep Guardiola, who is eyeing this season’s Champions League title as part of an , is fourth ahead of Jose Mourinho in fifth.
The pair of wins over United are Guardiola’s only titles in the competition to date, whilst Mourinho tasted victory with Porto and Inter Milan in 2004 and 2010 respectively.
Romanian Mircea Lucescu, who is one of the most decorated managers of all time following a long career in Eastern Europe, rounds out the top six.
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