Fabio Cannavaro claims Juventus would ‘be wrong twice’ if they sack Andrea Pirlo and highlights Gennaro Gattuso silenced the critics at Napoli.
The current Guangzhou FC coach and former teammate of Pirlo and Gattuso spoke to La Gazzetta dello Sport about the big game between his two former clubs.
Reports in Italy claim the Bianconeri coach Pirlo risks losing his job with a poor result against the Partenopei tomorrow, but the 47-year-old World Cup winner said the ‘blame can’t only be his’.
Fabio Cannavaro claims Juventus would ‘be wrong twice’ if they sack Andrea Pirlo and highlights Gennaro Gattuso silenced the critics at Napoli.
The current Guangzhou FC coach and former teammate of Pirlo and Gattuso spoke to La Gazzetta dello Sport about the big game between his two former clubs.
Reports in Italy claim the Bianconeri coach Pirlo risks losing his job with a poor result against the Partenopei tomorrow, but the 47-year-old World Cup winner said the ‘blame can’t only be his’.
“Calm down,” Cannavaro told La Gazzetta dello Sport. “When Juve picked Andrea, he knew very well that he had no experience.
“It’s logical that he should have time to mature, even for his relationship with the team. There are still 30 points to play for and it’s right to leave this judgment pending.
“And he did good things, launching young players and managed a complicated dressing room with people who won a lot.
“Sure, some things don’t work, he has made mistakes: he’s human. It’s a heritage that must be protected. After all, if Juve don’t confirm his position, what did they choose him to do last summer?
“They would be wrong twice if they take that decision now. And the blame can’t only be his if the players make mistakes on and off the pitch.”
The tables have turned since the last match between Juventus and Napoli, when reports claimed Gattuso risked losing his job in Naples.
Cannavaro said he’s familiar with the process said Gattuso now have silenced the critics through a good run of results.
“The washing machine effect, as I call it,” he said. “It happens in my city [Naples], as much as in the rest of Italy.
“People are insulted, drowned and then… dried in a whirlwind without respect. It happened to Pirlo, even to Pippo Inzaghi who was highly criticised before winning at Juventus.
“I don’t say it because I talk about old friends. Two months ago, some said Rino was the worst of all. But for the coach, the numbers count. Now that he comes from four straight wins and finally has the important players he missed for a long time, they are all mute.
“And don’t tell me that these results are because of the blackout…"