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Former Italian footballer Andrea Pirlo has confirmed that he is no longer in the race to become the head coach of Italy's men's national side, with his partnership with a betting company derailing his appointment after he had initially emerged as a strong contender.
Pirlo had emerged as the leading candidate to succeed Gennaro Gattuso after high-profile options Pep Guardiola and Carlo Ancelotti reportedly turned down the opportunity to manage the four-time world champions. Gattuso stepped down after four-time champions achieved an unwanted hat-trick: of not being able to qualify for the FIFA World Cup after losing to Bosnia and Herzegovina. The former AC Milan and Juventus stalwart was a strong contender after Guardiola and Ancelotti declined the coaching gig, but the move has collapsed, leaving the Italian Football governing body, FIGC, in search of another strong option. The team's technical director Paolo Maldini and special advisor Leonardo were keen to have their former AC Milan teammate on board, but an association with Russian betting firm Fonbet proved to be a massive hurdle, as per Goal.com. With Italy having strict regulations related to advertising and promotion of gambling entities, Pirlo's association with the firm created a massive conflict of interest. Taking to Instagram, he broke his silence on the speculations around his association with Italian football after learning he was not under consideration anymore. "Out of respect for the institutions, the federation and everybody involved, I have chosen to remain silent until now," Pirlo wrote in a statement as quoted by Goal.com. "However, after learning last night that I am no longer a candidate for the Italy national team head coach position, I feel it is necessary to clarify a few points." "Over the past few days, I have watched with great bitterness as the debate regarding my name and the possibility of my taking on the role of Italy national team head coach unfold. Throughout my career, first as a player and then as a coach, I have always performed my duties within full respect of the laws of the countries I have worked in and the contracts I signed." "The professional collaboration that is the subject of recent controversy came about as part of my working experience in the United Arab Emirates and is exclusively of a commercial and sporting nature," he said. Pirlo, the 2006 FIFA World Cup winner with Italy, made it clear that there was no political significance behind his commercial partnership with the betting firm and rubbished all the criticism suggesting otherwise, saying that his partnership is on "sporting grounds". "Attributing political meaning to this collaboration means attributing convictions to me that I have never expressed and that I do not hold... It is regrettable that a decision based on sporting grounds was quickly dragged into a public debate that ended up attribution motives and intentions to my name that never existed. My love for Italy does not depend on a job," he added. The collapse of this move with Pirlo leaves Maldini and FIGC in a tough situation, who had planned a meeting for Tuesday which was expected to be a platform for an official unveiling. But now, the FIGC will need to start right from the scratch with the UEFA Nations League starting in September. Despite his "bitterness", Pirlo expressed that his relationship with FIGC top brass is great, "I wish to thank Maldini and Leonardo for the respect and faith that they showed in me," he added. "I know their competence, their seriousness, and the love that they have always dedicated to Italian football," he signed off. (ANI)
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