16 October 2023 , 21:12
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Italy head coach Luciano Spalletti has admitted his players have suffered a “traumatic” week before facing England after two Premier League stars were removed from his squad over a gambling scandal.
And the former Napoli boss claimed betting is a “temptation” and a “vice." Newcastle ’s Sandro Tonali and Nicolò Zaniolo of Aston Villa are under police investigation following a raid on Italy’s training camp last Thursday.
Reports in Italy yesterday claimed that the £55million summer signing from Milan has admitted placing bets on football matches and risks a ban of up to three years unless he collaborates with authorities. Zaniolo has claimed he did not bet on football matches - and he was unaware he had played poker and blackjack on illegal platforms.
The latest scandal to rock Italian football has dominated the build-up to tonight’s (tues) re-match of the Euro 2021 final won on penalties by Italy. And Spalletti admitted: “It has been traumatic for the team because we had the authorities almost coming into the dressing room. Everyone was surprised. Everyone was upset. Some of us were able to give them a hug before they went home.
"The players themselves were absolutely distraught because when you are part of a national team, very strong ties and bonds are created. Apart from the results you get, the one other thing you keep with you for the rest of your life is the lasting relationships you make in the national team set-up.
"I do think it is a form of temptation, gambling is a form of temptation, it is a vice, and these things happen and can happen. But we are committed to keep speaking to these players, we will continue to keep our eye on them, and we will try to provide them with all of the help, information and support we can to make sure they can go back to doing what they enjoy doing most.
Luciano Spalletti has faced disruption this week (Antonio Balasco/IPA Sport/ipa-agency.net/REX/Shutterstock)HAVE YOUR SAY! Will England beat Italy? Comment below.
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"With this misadventure, we’ve all been affected by this. We need to move forward. We have to focus on what our goals are. They’re good players. But we can’t depend solely on these players in order to get a result.”
When England beat Italy in the Stadio Diego Armando Maradona in March, Roberto Mancini was still in charge and Spalletti was about to win Napoli’s first Serie A title for 33 years. Since then, the former Manchester City boss has done a Don Revie - who left England to coach the UAE in 1977 - to take the Saudi Arabia job.
And Spalletti has been left to takeover an Italy team which failed to reach the last two World Cups - and is now in danger of missing out on Euro 2024. He is unbeaten in his first three games but the November 20 match against Ukraine in Leverkusen promises to settle second place unless they win tonight.
“When you agree to take on the position of Italy head coach, you cannot simply think, “I don’t have enough time, I don’t have this or that available to me. You cannot coach using excuses. We must not come here with fear. We must not be hung up on the colour of the shirts the opposition wear, the names of the players on the back or the stadium we are involved in.
"We have to do our jobs. The only way to do that is by going out there and competing. If you don’t want to compete, if you don’t want to test yourself against the best in football, you may as well give up. There’s no point in doing this job. We haven’t come to play any old game. We have come to play the match we want to.”
Tottenham full-back Destiny Udogie is set to make his first Italy start after coming off the bench in the 4-0 weekend win over Malta.