Maldini and Leonardo resigned from the Italian national team two weeks after their appointment
Italian soccer legends Paolo Maldini and Leonardo stepped down from their positions with the Italian national team on July 27, just 16 days after their appointment. The reason was a disagreement with the leadership of the Italian Football Federation and the organization’s president, whom the former AC Milan players had publicly criticized.
Paolo Maldini and Leonardo decided to step down from their roles as technical director and advisor to the Italian Football Federation (FIGC). The reason for their departure was a sharp conflict with the federation’s leadership over the appointment of a new head coach for the Italian national team.
Both officials made the decision to leave the project just 16 days after taking office on July 11. The main reason for their resignation was that FIGC President Giovanni Malago opposed the appointment of Andrea Pirlo as the new head coach of the Italian national team.
Pirlo was close to securing the position as head coach of the “Squadra Azzurra,” but did not receive it due to his ties to a Russian betting company.
According to Paolo Maldini, agreeing to take on the role of technical director was one of his biggest mistakes. The legendary defender said that when compiling the list of candidates for the head coach position, Pep Guardiola was the first choice, and Andrea Pirlo was third.
Maldini and Leonardo were able to reach a preliminary agreement with Guardiola, but the federation stated that it did not have the funds to pay the Spanish coach’s salary and instructed them to find a cheaper alternative.
After that, officials finalized a contract with Andrea Pirlo. However, Federation President Giovanni Malago personally blocked the appointment, citing Pirlo’s controversial collaboration with a Russian bookmaker subject to sanctions as the reason.
After his dismissal, Maldini issued a scathing statement directed at the leadership of Italian soccer.
“This is a sad day for Italian soccer, as it has fallen lower than ever before, and all because of the federation’s lack of professionalism. We will remain at this low level as long as Malago is president. That is the truth. Leonardo and I did everything we could, but believe me: there’s no saving us now,” Paolo Maldini emphasized.
This was reported by the Italian outlet Sky Sport.
As a reminder, Pirlo will not take the helm of the Italian national team due to his collaboration with a Russian bookmaker.
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