Arrigo Sacchi insists he is grateful to Roberto Baggio and reveals ‘what exactly happened’ with the Divine Ponytail during the 1994 World Cup.
Sacchi’s previous article on La Gazzetta dello Sport caused controversy as former Italy striker Aldo Serena had accused the ex-Azzurri boss of being ungrateful to Baggio, who played a key role for La Nazionale in the 1994 World Cup.
Sacchi hit back at Serena in a new article for the pink paper, although he never mentioned the former Inter, Juventus and Torino forward.
“Somebody erroneously interpreted my words as an accusation against Baggio and a lack of gratitude for him. Far be it from me,” wrote Sacchi.
“I will always be grateful to the players who allowed me to reach that target, and I’ll be forever proud of that runners-up finish because it was the end of an extraordinary and difficult uphill path, which we completed despite thousands of opponents who rowed against us.
“Quite simply, I wanted to highlight that a penalty, actually three penalties, can’t make a difference when it comes to judging an experience.
“I was sorry to hear about the controversy after my latest Gazzetta article. In the tone, I felt an envy that I’d love to ban from human beings. Let me ask something: if the critics finished second at a World Cup, would they be proud?
“I want to tell you exactly what happened with Baggio who I’ve known for a long time, since his time in the Vincenza youth sector,” continued the ex-Azzurri boss.
“When I was appointed national team coach, Roberto was having highs and lows at Juventus, so I told him, ‘Come to the national team, and you’ll have fun!’ That’s what happened. Roberto was excellent in the World Cup qualifiers, but during the tournament, he had some physical problems that we tried to manage.
“He wasn’t fully fit at the beginning, but then he was extraordinary against Spain and Bulgaria in the semi-final.
“I can confess that I still regret not stopping him against Bulgaria. I’ve always considered him a great footballer and I’ve always tried to put him in the best condition. I have to say that he gave Italy and me all his energy.
“I’ve never blamed anyone and will never do so because a group and the common good stand above everything else.”
Sacchi always stifled individual talent in favour of the team concept. It is possible to integrate both
More minutia from senior Sacchi
I agree. He did not want Baggio to dribble
Then why Baggio was not in 1996 euro?
Baggio left a great legacy unlike Sacchi who should never have been a manager
Sacchi is so dishonest, it’s revolting. He didn’t call up Baggio barely for the next two years, “stopping” him he did in his prime. Many other coaches are culpable too. Italys best player ever, IMO, was discarded by his own country in his prime. Only in Italy.
Even Ancelotti admitted to making a mistake not taking him to Parma. Italian coaches have always been the issue
Roberto Baggio was one of the greatest talents of his generation and if any coach cannot see that then they are seriously flawed.
I forget the year but Pele had Baggio as the best in the world
Baggio never participated in a Euro tournament. Let that sink in for a moment.
Sacchi is an idiot of the highest order. Baggio wasn’t fit to play against Bulgaria and was on one leg against Brazil. Should have never played and it was Sacchi’s fault.
Lorenzo – great call. “Baggio never participated in a Euro tournament. Let that sink in for a moment.” You are absolutely right and it’s an absolute disgrace. No other nation would keep such a star out of their team for basically no reason at all. Had Italy at various times had the likes of Baggio, Del Piero, Totti and Zola on the pitch instead of one of them only for ‘team balance’, they would probably have won another world cup and at least one more Euro. Now we cry out for players of this calibre, but they have disappeared.
They didn’t qualify for Euro 92 and Sacchi disliked Baggio and left him out of Euro 96 and Euro 2000 he was coming towards the end of his career
Montasio and Del Piero, you both have said my mind!
Kudos!
Good coaches of every sport play a style that adapts to the talent he has.
A great coach should utilise talent and not stifle it. However the training pitch is there for all players to learn new skills on ball control and basics like playing with both feet and heading etc