Former Juventus defender Pasquale Bruno says the standard of Italian football means clubs can ‘forget about winning European trophies’.
The former centre-back won a Uefa Cup in his time in Turin, but doesn’t see any hope of an Italian side repeating that feat this year, despite the fact that Juve, Torino, Napoli, Fiorentina, Inter and Roma all still involved in continental competition.
“In Italy at the moment, we are really poor at football,” Bruno said in an interview with the Daily Record.
Former Juventus defender Pasquale Bruno says the standard of Italian football means clubs can ‘forget about winning European trophies’.
The former centre-back won a Uefa Cup in his time in Turin, but doesn’t see any hope of an Italian side repeating that feat this year, despite the fact that Juve, Torino, Napoli, Fiorentina, Inter and Roma all still involved in continental competition.
“In Italy at the moment, we are really poor at football,” Bruno said in an interview with the Daily Record.
“We are so poor and so bad and we can forget about winning European trophies right now. In the last five years, we have had a big dip.
“I don’t think we can hope to win a European trophy in the near future. There is no chance. The standard is bad and Italian football is now really, really boring. It’s not fast or exciting.
“There is no money. Milan and Inter are struggling in this respect. The only club with any money is Juventus but they don’t have money like the English clubs.
“At least they own their own stadium and I don’t understand why more clubs don’t follow their mentality. When you own the ground, you make the money.
“There are no big Italian players and there are a lot of ordinary foreigners in the league now.
“When I see Juventus, AC [Milan] and Inter playing, I go to sleep. I’m not interested in the game.”
Bruno also played in Scotland for Heart of Midlothian in Scotland, and believes that Celtic can knock out Inter when they meet in the Europa League.
“There are no big players in Italy, we are struggling with money and I believe Celtic have a chance in these two games.
“I’m being honest. Inter are the favourites but I believe that Celtic do have a chance to beat them. If I was asked to bet, I’d say it’s probably 51-49 in Inter’s favour. It’s very close.
“The first game is in Glasgow and the atmosphere will be fantastic as always. That will be crucial. This might sound strange but a 0-0 draw might even be a good result for Celtic.
“If Inter score in Glasgow then it will be very difficult for Celtic when they go back to Milan. But if they keep Inter out, then who knows what can happen.
“Inter signed Nemanja Vidic in the summer but he is struggling. He’s not the same as he was at United. At the back, Inter are very poor.
“Celtic can profit from the poor level of the Inter defence. In midfield, they have some good players but no big players.
“[Gary] Medel is not bad. He sits in front of the defence and likes to tackle. That is why they call him the Pitbull.
“He’s not fantastic but he does a good job for the team and is hard on the pitch.
“They are an average team and that’s why they are struggling in the league.
“It’s surprising to see Inter in the middle of the table when the level of Italian football is so poor.
“That gives you an idea of the kind of team they are. [Inter Coach] Roberto [Mancini] has a really hard job at Inter. The last time he was there it was a different story, he had Milito, Cambiasso, Eto’o and Ibrahimovic.
“That was a different time. He did a good job at [Manchester] City but he had good players like [Yaya] Toure and [Pablo] Zabaleta.
“Roberto is a very good manager. I like the way he plays football. He likes to attack and go forward with the ball.
“But at the top level, a manager needs top players. Without them, you are an average manager. Roberto is a good manager but it’s a hard job at Inter when they don’t have big money to spend and he can’t get good players.”