Italy boss lifts lid on his strict 'no d***heads' policy ahead of England clash
Italy coach Luciano Spalletti has adopted the All Black’s philosophy of ‘no d***heads’ 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 when Roberto Mancini walked out to make himself a fortune in Qatar.
Italy, who failed to make it to the World Cup last winter after suffering a shock play-off defeat to North Macedonia, will arrive to face England at Wembley on Tuesday night with their hopes of qualifying for next summer’s Euro finals in Germany in serious doubt.
Spalletti is taking his lead from the all-conquering New Zealand rugby union team, whose players implemented a ‘no d***heads’ policy in a bid to build an unbreakable team spirit.
The Italy boss 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.
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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***heads.’ 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.”
Spalletti’s first game in charge brought a 1-1 draw in North Macedonia in September, but they then responded by beating Ukraine 2-1 a few days later.
Only four of the players who were in the team that overcame England on penalties at Wembley just over two years ago remain.
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Spalletti has assured all of the players that they will start his reign with a clean slate.
He has included Juventus striker Moises Kean in his squad after the Everton flop was left out in 2021 when Mancini revealed he had issues with his behaviour and attitude.
Kean returned to the Turin club in a £25million deal in March after loan spells with Paris St Germain and Juve following his failure to settle on Merseyside.
He scored just four goals in 39 appearances for the Toffees after they had paid Juventus £25million in August 2019.
Spalletti said: “Kean has made a huge impression on me. The way he looked at me, the way he hugged me, showed that he is a player who can wear this shirt.
“I will find out about his behaviour and I will talk about it with him. But I will become an uncomfortable subject for those who are not immediately clear as to what their behaviour should be when they are here.”
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