Capello slates Spalletti for Milan-focused national team problem: “Alarm bell ringing” | OneFootball

It has been well reported that there are no representatives from AC Milan in the Italian National Team, and this morning, Fabio Capello has slated Luciano Spalletti for the decision.

Ahead of the tournament, the questions surrounding Italy were not, “Will they retain?”, but rather, “Will they even progress into the deep stages?”

Those questions were answered on Saturday. No, they won’t, and no, they won’t, as they fell to a 2-0 loss to the Swiss National Team, and their tournament came to a crashing end. For some, though, this was expected, with the Azzurri struggling a lot in recent years – barring the previous European success.

Recently, it has been questioned within the Milan fanbase why the Rossoneri had no representatives at the European Championship for the Azzurri, and this point has been furthered after the elimination.

Of course, there are not heaps of Italian talent in the Diavolo’s squad, but surely it cannot be any worse than some of the players that travelled to Germany. With this in mind, Capello took a chance to slate Spalletti for his selections, and even the selection to pick him, in an interview with Gazzetta dello Sport (via Football Italia).

“From what I saw, I think it [system changes] caused confusion, especially among the players. Jorginho and Fagioli were the playmakers, but none of them were Lobotka. They have different skill sets. Xhaka did what he wanted. But I’d use another word for Spalletti – arrogance.

“Against Spain, I thought Spalletti acted as a club coach. He sent the team to the pitch, saying, ‘This is us. Let’s see if we are better than them.’ He chose a four-man defence against the best wingers in the Euros, and we saw who was better.”

Who has more responsibility? Spalletti or the players?

“It’s a good question. Of course, Spalletti has great responsibility, but the footballers must feel the weight of the shirt. I had never seen Italy play like this. And let me add something I didn’t like. Everything was too sensationalised: words, training sessions, events… We’ve seen a little bit of everything. I prefer the culture of low profile and hard work.”

Capello feels there is another problem with the national team…

“When there isn’t a Milan player in the team and not even a Juve player in the starting XI, then an alarm bell must ring. If these clubs don’t have valuable players for the national team, we have a problem.”