Cagliari coach Walter Zenga has pointed out that the main priority must be “coming back to life” and revealed that he already had an emergency clause in the contract with the Rossoblu.
Serie A is at a standstill and the salary cut in football has been one of the main topics in the Italian sports pages, with Juventus coming to an agreement between club and players about a pay cut during the forced break.
Cagliari coach Walter Zenga has pointed out that the main priority must be “coming back to life” and revealed that he already had an emergency clause in the contract with the Rossoblu.
Serie A is at a standstill and the salary cut in football has been one of the main topics in the Italian sports pages, with Juventus coming to an agreement between club and players about a pay cut during the forced break.
Zenga has revealed that he already agreed on a pay cut “on March 3” and has pointed out that they are prepared to conclude the campaign but also insisted that football is not first in line.
“I’m optimistic by nature, at this moment it would create an aura of negativity not looking towards the finish line,” Zenga told Radio Rai Uno. “It seems difficult to hypothesise and predict a date, above all because the situation is not outlined.
“The main issue is that we can calmly go beyond [June 30] if the Leagues come to an agreement with FIFA and the various associations, without forgetting that the priority is to come back to life.
“One thing is to stop for a month and go on holiday, another is to stay at home for two months. This will change us big time. I remain optimistic and think of the day we will return to the restaurant or to a cinema.”
The 59-year-old remains optimistic going through a difficult time, self-isolated in Sardinia, away from his family.
“There are people out there who have lost loved ones,” he said. “I have been voluntarily isolated since March 8, without having any symptoms.
“I wanted to make a positive contribution; I get out of the line at the supermarket.
“My family is in Dubai, this creates some problems for me, but I’m happy that my children are well. I look to tomorrow with great optimism.”
In Serie A, one of the main topics has been the wage cut and Zenga has claimed that both him and President Tommaso Giulini already had prepared for an emergency when he signed with Cagliari.
“I’m sorry that we are focusing on money and not the real problem, that of solving this bad moment,” he said. “I feel sorry for you, but it’s not the priority. It’s something secondary and I’ll explain one thing: In my contract there’s a clause of common sense concerning this period, intelligent people do so.
“Giulini and I did what Juventus did on March 3. I read about the meetings between clubs and AIC… it seemed right that these things were thought about a little earlier.”
Zenga has claimed that the players will need time to prepare in the even of a resumption, given the circumstance they have been going through.
The Rossoblu tactician has claimed that it’s possible to play during the summer, but underlined that the priority is not football at the moment.
“One account is a holiday, another is this situation. The preparation will be completely different, specific training will be needed after two months locked up at home. There will be no friendly matches to prepare.
“A championship of 12 games will be played in a very restricted time, it will completely change the methodology of the preparation.
“It’s a very complex and articulated speech, I never thought we could go back to play on May 3, it seems too early. If FIFA will be willing to postpone the date beyond June 30, it could be possible to play during the summer and shorten the gap between one season and another. Who cares about the holidays?
“But what counts now, is to see the numbers go down at 17:00 GMT every night. The problem is not a season or 13 games. The problem now, is coming back to life. We play tirelessly, it’s not a problem.”