What is remarkable looking back at Ancelotti’s time at Chelsea is just how brutally unfair it was to sack him. He did everything that was asked of him in terms of trying to change the team, make it more exciting and giving young players a chance – something that it has taken until this season, with Frank Lampard, to happen again. And Lampard is doing it with better young players.

It is forgotten that Ancelotti was brave enough to break up a title-winning side. Out went Joe Cole, Michael Ballack, Juliano Belletti, Ricardo Carvalho and Deco as he did what he wanted – and what Abramovich wanted – and promoted youth.

In came Josh McEachran, Gael Kakuta, Patrick van Aanholt, Jeffrey Bruma, Fabio Borini and, also, Daniel Sturridge. It was astonishingly bold - no other Chelsea manager would have done it - but it is what Ancelotti had talked about with sporting director Frank Arnesen before he took the job. He actually did not want to spend money. He wanted to develop a young team and believed that Abramovich wanted it also – because that is what he told him.

Even if that crop of young players was not good enough, Ancelotti was willing to try and paid the price. Unfortunately, injuries and illness hit hard – Lampard, John Terry and Michael Essien missed key parts of the season and Didier Drogba contracted malaria, while there was also the blow of Ancelotti being seriously undermined when his assistant Ray Wilkins was oddly sacked by the club in November 2010 and he had Michael Emenalo, who went on to be the technical director, imposed upon him. There is a famous photograph of Ancelotti distancing himself from Emenalo as they sat on the bench when Chelsea were away to Birmingham City in the first game after Wilkins’ dismissal.