Sampdoria full-back Tommaso Augello felt he didn’t deserve a place in Roberto Mancini’s Italy squad and said coach Claudio Ranieri’s farewell was ‘a big blow’ for the Blucerchiati.
The 26-year-old played 37 Serie A games and helped Claudio Ranieri’s men finish ninth in the table this term.
Ranieri left the club after the campaign and the defender said he ‘owes’ the former Roma coach, who gave him an opportunity to play in Serie A.
“He gathered us together and in short he told us the next game would be his last,” Augello told Il Secolo XIX. “He shocked us.
“We knew he was fine and imagined he would stay, it was a big blow because we were super comfortable as a team, in terms of serenity and compactness.
“He’s a decent person, so difficult to find in football. I guarantee you that he was very sad too. I personally owe him eternal gratitude because he gave me a chance to play in Serie A.
“And we have also established an excellent relationship with his staff.”
Augello signed a permanent deal until June 2025 when he completed his move from Spezia last summer and said he’s ‘happy’ at the Marassi.
“I think we must always aim to develop,” Augello told Il Secolo XIX. “At the moment, I’m very happy with Sampdoria and I think I’ll stay here for a long time.
“But no one should ever feel they have made it, that’s how I see it.”
The defender didn’t make the squad for Euro 2020 this summer but claimed he doesn’t feel he deserved to be among the 26 chosen players.
He was asked if he thinks there’s a lack of good full-backs in the national team, but he pointed at players who are better than himself.
“Honestly, I never thought I deserved it,” he said. “In my opinion, it’s not like that.
“[Leonardo] Spinazzola and [Emerson] Palmieri are two full-backs that are much better than me.”