Di Canio: ‘We wanted to call Balotelli, imagine if Rashford was Italian’ | OneFootball

Former Italian striker Paolo Di Canio is impressed by the talent of English players, especially considering that Marcus Rashford and Jadon Sancho have not been included in the EURO 2024 squad: ‘Three years ago, we wanted to call Mario Balotelli…’

Di Canio was one of the Sky Sport Italia pundits on Tuesday night and commented on England’s disappointing 0-0 draw against Slovenia.

The former Lazio and West Ham forward argued that the Three Lions have excellent quality but have been unable to prove it on the pitch.

To make his point more straightforward, he made a comparison with Italian football.

Di Canio: ‘We wanted to call Balotelli, imagine if Rashford was Italian’

“Think about Sancho and Rashford, who were left home,” he said.

“Let’s be honest here. We wanted to call up Balotelli three years ago, so imagine if Rashford was Italian. We’d be like: ‘Please come, even if you go out at night sometimes…'”

Over the last few years, there’s been a massive debate in Italy about the lack of talented attacking players like legends Roberto Baggio, Alessandro Del Piero, or Francesco Totti.

Fabio Capello had his say a few days ago, arguing that youth sectors no longer focus on technique but prioritise tactics instead.

Other Italian football personalities, such as ex-Juventus coach Massimiliano Allegri, share Capello’s view.