Roberto Mancini might’ve joked he was ‘treated like a serial killer’ when quitting Italy to become coach of Saudi Arabia, but the President of the priest’s football team says ‘Dante would’ve sent him to Hell.’
The tactician took over the Azzurri in 2018 and went on to win the EURO 2020 trophy, but the situation soured after he failed to qualify for the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.
There was tension with the Federation and changes to his staff that he was not happy with, leading eventually to his resignation in mid-August.
Just a couple of weeks later, he signed a four-year contract as the new coach of the Saudi Arabia national team.
Speaking off the record to ITASportPress, Mancini was quoted as saying he was “treated like a serial killer” for this decision.
It was an exaggeration, but the condemnation continues to come down from all quarters.
The Mayor of Pesaro put in a formal request to remove Mancini’s status as testimonial for tourism in the Marche region, where he is originally from.
Even more damning, the President of the Italy team of priests made a remarkable evaluation of the situation.
“If I was to judge Mancini on a human level, I’d say it was not a good look,” Don Jordan Coraglia told Adnkronos.
“How can he show his face the next time he has anything to do with Italy? He would always be judged as the man who refused his country. Dante would’ve sent him to Hell.
“If the choice was dictated purely by money, then Mancini should know that he can’t take it with him at the end. As a Christian, you wonder what someone needs all this money for? Think of the human aspect.”
The legendary writer Dante Alighieri’s Divine Comedy epic poem about the Inferno set the template for many modern depictions of Hell, including his categorisation of where people go in the Nine Circles of Hell.