Claudio Ranieri was confident that Daniele De Rossi would become ‘an important coach’ in the coming years.
The 39-year-old Italian, who took over at Serie B outfit SPAL in October 2022, spent 17 years of his playing career with Roma, only leaving for a six-month spell with Boca Juniors before hanging up his boots. Since taking over at SPAL, De Rossi has guided the club to three wins and six draws in 13 league outings.
Speaking in a press conference ahead of Cagliari’s clash with SPAL, Ranieri spoke highly about De Rossi and touched on his work in charge of the Serie B club.
“He was an important player for Roma, for me, and I’m also sure he will become an important coach. But now I think of SPAL, who are an excellent team.
“I have some data here: in terms of duels won they are first in the league, and the same for successful passes, they are the team that manages to concretise most of the actions they create, they reach 79% of this statistic… they create a lot, they make few mistakes.
“And I would add that with De Rossi’s arrival they have done better away from home, conceding little and winning at home against Parma and Reggina, as well as not conceding a goal away from ‘Mazza’ for 319 minutes. We’ll have to keep our antennae super-straight.”
De Rossi stepped into the world of coaching with the Italian national team, spending almost two years in Roberto Mancini’s Azzurri set-up. He was a part of the staff that helped the side win Euro 2020.
The 39-year-old’s contract expires with SPAL in June 2024 and he’ll be looking to continue his coaching development before stepping up to the topflight.