Paolo Maldini has resigned from his position as technical director of the Italian Football Federation (FIGC), with his adviser, Leonardo, also departing. Their resignations follow a decision not to appoint Andrea Pirlo as the new head coach for Italy.
Both Maldini and Leonardo left their roles just 16 days after the FIGC officially announced their appointments. The decision regarding Pirlo was made on Sunday, with talks ceasing due to concerns over his connections to a Russian gambling firm.
Head coach selection challenges
The FIGC had tasked Maldini and Leonardo with leading a significant restructuring within the federation. This overhaul was initiated after the Azzurri failed to qualify for the World Cup for a third consecutive tournament.
Pirlo, a World Cup winner with Italy in 2006, had been considered the leading candidate for the head coach role after Pep Guardiola declined the opportunity. Guardiola had also been approached by the FIGC, which was reportedly prepared to make substantial budget adjustments to secure him. Maldini and Leonardo met with Guardiola over three days in Barcelona, presenting a comprehensive ‘Azzurro project’ aimed at rebuilding Italian football across all national teams. However, Guardiola rejected the offer for personal reasons.
Before Guardiola, Carlo Ancelotti was also contacted but has a contract with the Brazil national team.
Pirlo’s links to Russian firm
Pirlo announced on Monday that he was no longer in contention for the head coach position. His potential appointment faced objections from some FIGC officials and politicians due to his role as a global ambassador for Russian bookmaker Fonbet, especially given the ongoing conflict in Ukraine.
The 47-year-old former Azzurri midfielder defended his involvement with Fonbet in an Instagram post. He stated that his collaboration, which began with an ambassadorial agreement in October, was exclusively commercial and sporting. Pirlo, who currently manages UAE Pro League club United FC in Dubai, asserted that attributing a political meaning to his collaboration would be assigning him convictions he has never expressed.
Several Italian politicians criticised the FIGC’s initial consideration of Pirlo, citing his ties to Fonbet. The company has sponsored sporting events involving veterans of the conflict in Ukraine and organised events in Russia where Pirlo appeared alongside pro-Kremlin figures. One politician from the centrist Azione party, Carlo Calenda, stated that anyone promoting Russia after 2022 should not hold national office.
Pina Picierno, a vice-president of the European Parliament, commented that Italian football required a “cultural, ethical and managerial revolution” and that the choice of Pirlo moved in the opposite direction. Conversely, the Russian ambassador in Rome, Aleksey Paramonov, expressed sadness that Pirlo was being ostracised in his own country despite his contributions to sport.
Scrutiny of Pirlo’s connections to Fonbet intensified last spring after he participated in an event in Moscow, where he and former teammate Marco Materazzi signed autographs. Reports indicate that nationalist pro-Kremlin pop star Shaman, a vocal supporter of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, also performed at this event. Vladyslav Heraskevych, a Ukrainian skeleton slider, criticised Pirlo for appearing alongside Russian footballer Artem Dzyuba, who had publicly expressed pride in being Russian following the conflict in Ukraine.
The Italian football community has been undergoing significant reflection since the team’s failure to qualify for a third World Cup earlier this year. This period of introspection followed Italy’s loss on penalties to Bosnia-Herzegovina in April, which led to coach Gennaro Gattuso’s departure and a reshuffle within the FIGC leadership.
According to Italian media, other names under consideration for the head coach role include Antonio Conte and Roberto Mancini, who led Italy to Euro 2020 victory before stepping down to coach Saudi Arabia.
Maldini and Leonardo were brought in to lead a huge shake-up at the FIGC in the wake of the Azzuri missing out on World Cup qualification for a third consecutive tournament.
Pirlo had been expected to terminate his contract with United FC to finalise his agreement to become Italy’s head coach.
The FIGC had met with Guardiola to try and convince him to succeed Gattuso and were willing to make an exceptional adjustment to their budget to hire him.
In their discussions with the former Manchester City manager in Barcelona, Maldini and Leonardo presented an idea that went beyond simply offering him a coaching role.
In the FIGC’s vision, Guardiola would have been the central figure in an ‘Azzurro project’ aiming to rebuild Italian football on solid foundations. Italy did not even qualify for the expanded World Cup this summer.
It would have been a complete overhaul that would have involved not only the senior national team but all other national teams. The Catalan is understood to have listened attentively to Maldini and Leonardo’s offer.
But Guardiola rejected the proposal for personal reasons beyond football, according to Sky in Italy.
Carlo Ancelotti was also contacted before Guardiola, according to Maldini, but has a contract with the Brazil national team.
Earlier on Monday, Pirlo announced he was no longer in contention to become the next Italy head coach.
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Source: skysports.com
