John Malago returns to Italy’s flop at the European Championship. During the interview given to today’s edition of Corriere della Serathe number one of CONI focused on the Italian national football teams, in particular he drew a parallel between the youth teams, Under 17 and Under 19 winners or as in the case of the Under 20 finalist at the World Cup, and the Under 21 and the first team, both disappointing:
“Whoever holds that position in the future – he commented – must understand that without the necessary compromise they will find themselves having to argue with some member. I want to point out that in the face of the successes of the Italy Under 17 and Under 19 at the European Championships and the final at the Under 20 World Cup, the Under 21 did not qualify for the Olympics and the senior team failed in Germany: that must mean something”.
Malagò then made a comparison between the world of football and that of athletics, which at the last European Championships won 24 medals, with players who would look like rich and spoiled kids. This is his response: “It doesn’t help to see kids triumph who – concluded the CONI president – earn a few thousand euros while athletes who are successful, have money, are popular, don’t have the right attitudes. In fact, they don’t even feel the need to show them off”.