Former Italy CT Arrigo Sacchi praises Antonio Conte but warns he has too much “fear” in his approach.
The former Juventus Coach will lead the Azzurri into Euro 2016 this summer, and Sacchi is hoping to see a bold approach.
“Conte is a true phenomenon, all he has to do is divest himself of a certain ‘Italian-ness’,” the tactician told La Presse.
“That means being more coherent, total football has little to do with Italian-ness. I’ve seen Antonio coach, he has clear ideas, talent and inventiveness.
Former Italy CT Arrigo Sacchi praises Antonio Conte but warns he has too much “fear” in his approach.
The former Juventus Coach will lead the Azzurri into Euro 2016 this summer, and Sacchi is hoping to see a bold approach.
“Conte is a true phenomenon, all he has to do is divest himself of a certain ‘Italian-ness’,” the tactician told La Presse.
“That means being more coherent, total football has little to do with Italian-ness. I’ve seen Antonio coach, he has clear ideas, talent and inventiveness.
“Now it’s time he removed the fear, enough playing with this feeling of inadequacy. We’ll have the ball, not the others.”
Sacchi then offered his opinions on some other notable Italian tacticians, including Leicester City’s Claudio Ranieri and Juventus boss Max Allegri.
“Ranieri? He’s pulling off a masterpiece, but with an inharmonious type of football. He’s a great tactician, he exploits the qualities of his team to the fullest.
“[Carlo] Ancelotti is different, and the fact he’s always had champions available to him doesn’t mean a thing. Look at how Real [Madrid] are doing with the same players.
“Allegri? I divide Coaches into three categories. The first are from a small gene pool, ones who put the style of play at the centre of their project. The second are ones who follow trends without thinking that much.
“The third are those who cling to the past, who are wedded to a single style of play.
“Max is a middle ground between the first two: he’s a great tactician, he knows how to change the game but he can’t just be content with winning.
“We’re emerging from a period of tactical dictatorship where the first idea is not to concede. Today there are a group of Coaches with a different idea of football.
“Who? [Eusebio] Di Francesco [of Sassuolo], [Roma’s Luciano] Spalletti, [Napoli Coach Maurizio] Sarri, Paulo Sousa [of Fiorentina] and [Empoli’s Marco] Giampaolo.”