ITALY BOSS SAYS: COPY ALL BLACKS
ITALY head coach Luciano Spalletti has adopted the All Blacks philosophy of no d**kheads as he looks to drag the European champions back from the brink of another humiliation.
Spalletti, the 64-year-old who quit Napoli at the end of last season after guiding the club to their first Serie A title in 33 years, has started cracking the whip in a bid to bring order and discipline to the squad he inherited in August.
Italy, who failed to make it to the World Cup last winter, will arrive to face England at Wembley on Tuesday night with their hopes of qualifying for next summer’s Euro finals in Germany in doubt.
Spalletti is taking his lead from the all-conquering New Zealand rugby union squad in a bid to build an unbreakable team spirit.
He banned players from wearing headphones when they reported for duty at his country’s national training centre at Coverciano last week and has had a run-in with Lazio boss Maurizio Sarri after the former Chelsea manager encouraged his players to drop out of the squad. He insists there will be no second chances.
Spalletti said: “For me, my players are special creatures – and I treat them as such. But, at the same time, I want special answers.
“We don’t come here to giggle about what we do on the pitch or about the time we spend in Coverciano.
“This is a game, but it requires a lot of seriousness and professionalism.
“There’s a book about the All Blacks with this title No D**kheads.
“Do you get the idea? I told the footballers it will be my Christmas present to them.
“Here, we do things seriously, we don’t have different spaces.
“We are willing to make this sacrifice to bring home the result. There is no room for banalities.
“I have achieved a lot without arrogance, without presumption, without superficiality, without hesitation. I mean this in the sense that there is no room for anything else, except to bring home the result, because we all depend on that.
“We won’t throw away the relationships built here. They will remain if we live them intensely.
“But the end result counts – and to achieve it we must commit ourselves deeply and totally.
“That’s why I don’t want to see anyone waddling around the place with headphones in their ears like an idiot.
“If that happens, his career will continue – but not with me.”