Italy international Giorgio Chiellini has admitted that he is undecided over his national team future. The 33-year-old did not feature in Roberto Mancini’s first squad earlier in the year and he has now hinted that he could move on to allow the younger players to establish themselves under the new manager.
It’s weird to think of Juventus being without Gianluigi Buffon, but as one modern icon of football leaves Turin, another arrives, as the Old Lady have made a major summer statement.
Cristiano Ronaldo’s departure from Real Madrid, having fired them to the last three Champions League crowns including one at the expense of Juve in 2017, leaving Spain for Italy in his early 30s mirrored a move made by previous Bernabeu favourite in compatriot Luis Figo. He was a similar age when quitting Los Blancos for Inter Milan. Continue reading
Neymar, who played with the speculation linking him with a move to Real Madrid and said that he is staying at Paris Saint-Germain. He said he is sure that Ronaldo will have a huge impact in Serie A. He said “I not just think, but believe so that Cristiano Ronaldo will change Italian football. He is a great player and it will be again the Italian football I used to during my childhood days.”
Italian World Cup winner Andrea Pirlo has revealed that he has held talks with members of the Italian FA and other clubs as he considers stepping into a coaching career. The 38-year-old hang up his boots during the back end of 2017, and he is expected to be given a formal send-off at a San Siro testimonial next month.
After the bitter disappointment of losing the 2017 Champions League Final to Real Madrid, a question that many were asking was whether or not we were witnessing the end of what has undoubtedly been a great Juventus team over the last few years.
Such prolonged domestic dominance, with six successive Serie A title victories under their belt, is not something that should be discredited but the fact that they have not managed to win Europe’s top club competition since 1996 cannot be ignored either. Continue reading
Gianluigi Buffon could prolong his career for a couple of seasons, according to the goalkeeper’s agent Silvano Martina. The 40-year-old was initially expected to hang up his boots at the end of the season, but following another call-up to the Italy squad, he is considering the prospect of playing on for a few more years.
This summer at the World Cup in Russia, the Italian national team will not be there to compete but despite the disappointment of that, this World Cup can still be a very enjoyable one. With many teams in contention, this looks set to be one of the most competitive World Cup’s we have seen for the past few years, and realistically there are at least half a dozen teams who have a genuine chance of winning.
The top of the betting is full of big international teams, with Brazil, Germany and France leading the way. Behind those the likes of Spain, Argentina and Belgium will all head to Russia with a realistic chance of going all the way, and that is without mentioning the outsiders who are capable of causing an upset like England and Portugal. Continue reading
Chelsea manager Antonio Conte has revealed his desire to remain at Stamford Bridge for the remainder of his existing contract. The Italian’s future has been a topic of speculation in recent weeks with reports emerging that he could get the sack at the end of the campaign.
Speaking ahead of the Watford game, Conte stressed that there is no rift between him and the club’s hierarchy whilst insisting that he would like to honour the remainder of his contract which expires in 18 months’ time, he said: “From the start of this season there have been a lot of speculation and rumours around me. The only thing I can tell you now is I still have 18 months of contract with Chelsea. My intention, my will, is to respect the contract.
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Italy is in turmoil after failing to reach the World Cup finals for the first time since 1958 and now the blame game has started. The Italian football federation president Carlo Tavecchio has revealed that he has not slept since their elimination at the hands of Sweden and he blamed the debacle squarely on the shoulders of head coach Gian Piero Ventura.
Of course Ventura was the first victim of their exit when was sacked from the job two days after the game. Tavecchio was expected to follow suit but he has remained resolute and is staying in the role as things stand and he didn’t hold back when talking about that fateful night.
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The dust has barely settled on the Italian national team’s disastrous World Cup campaign and the obituaries are still being written. But there is no doubt that Gian Piero Ventura’s spell in charge of the Azzurri will be long remembered as one of the darkest moments in Italian football history.
Not since 1958 had the Azzurri failed to qualify for the sport’s elite competition and, to put things in context, that team was still recovering from the 1949 Superga air disaster involving Torino FC (who had just won four-straight league titles) that robbed them of 10 first-team players. Such was the impact at the time that, as well as missing out in 1958, they also failed to advance beyond the first round of the 1950, 1954, and 1962 World Cup Finals and did not take part in the first edition of the European Championships in 1960. However, there were no such mitigating circumstances for the 2017 debacle. Continue reading