Antonello Valentini, CEO of the amateur league and former general manager of FIGC, spoke on `1 Football Club`, a radio program hosted by Luca Cerchione on 1 Station Radio. Here is an excerpt from the interview.
We are facing an Italian national team that will have to compete in a World Cup qualifying group, where Norway has already started with two wins in the first two matches. We cannot afford to miss the third World Cup in a row.
`No, it would be a sporting catastrophe, and not just for football, but for the entire Italian sports movement. Missing World Cup qualification for the third time is a scenario I don`t even want to think about. I must say that we have a very difficult group because Norway has gained six points in the first two games, with a total of nine goals scored and only two conceded. That being said, Italy needs to remember that it is Italy. It is true that there are five teams in the group and only the first one qualifies directly. Norway is certainly the biggest danger, and if we were to finish second, there would be the specter of the playoffs, which is better to avoid. Norway is not just Haaland, whom we will face in Italy in December anyway. They also have other players, especially in attack, who play in the major European leagues. They are a well-organized team, physically very strong. We need to see what physical condition we will be in and what injuries we might have by June 6th, when we play in Oslo and will have a clearer picture of the situation.`
If you had to bet on a team to win the Scudetto today, who would you choose?
`Logic says it will be a duel to the end between Inter and Napoli. I don`t root for any team in our league, I am a fan of Bari, the team from my hometown. That being said, Napoli`s victory would be a breath of fresh air for all of Southern Italian football. Unfortunately, Napoli made a misstep in Venice, drawing and losing two points in the Scudetto race. But there is still time to recover. I have always said that Napoli`s best signing this season is Antonio Conte: for his professionalism, his character, and his ability to transmit ideas obsessively, but effectively. Inter, however, has a superior squad: they could field two high-level teams, not just one. Napoli, on the other hand, does not have the same quality in the second lines. Until a few days ago, Taremi was being spoken badly of at Inter, yet he has just scored two goals with his national team. He returns to Milan more relieved. Inter, in my opinion, is the most complete and strongest team. The only problem could be the Champions League, but I have some doubts about this: experience teaches that victories are positive fuel. When you win, fatigue becomes secondary and becomes a stimulus to do even better.`
Does scoring also help in scoring? I ask because at Napoli both Lukaku and Raspadori have scored with their respective national teams.
`Yes, it certainly helps. Scoring earns self-esteem, confidence, and consideration among teammates. Knowing Antonio Conte, I thought he would have banged his fist on the table with the club more forcefully when Kvaratskhelia left. We are talking about a player who not only could have been decisive from set pieces, but who possesses extraordinary talent capable of creating chances out of nothing. Of course, if a player wants to leave and the club receives an adequate offer, it is difficult to hold him back. However, Napoli deserved something more in attack to compete at the highest levels. The advantage, compared to Inter, is that they do not have European cups, so they can only focus on the league. But, as I said, when you win, you want to continue winning, and fatigue becomes an irrelevant detail.`
By losing Kvaratskhelia, Napoli has lost a lot. But wanting to quantify this loss, how much has it affected them?
`In my opinion, they have lost a lot, especially in terms of pure talent and the ability to create scoring chances. Kvaratskhelia was able to make the most of a striker like Lukaku, who needs to receive playable balls in the penalty area. In addition to his dribbling and marking skills, Kvaratskhelia also guaranteed solutions from set pieces. I repeat, I thought Conte would have insisted more not so much to keep him, but to replace him adequately, which then did not happen.`
Some claim that this situation has strained the relationship between Antonio Conte and De Laurentiis. Do you have any news about this? And if not, do you think it is plausible?
`Knowing the character of Antonio Conte and that of Aurelio De Laurentiis, I would say it is a miracle that the two have not yet argued. Evidently, being intelligent people, they have understood that it is better to get along. They are completely opposite characters, but for the good of Napoli they will have found a meeting point. We will see how the league goes: if Napoli were to win the Scudetto, it would be one thing, otherwise the discussion would change. De Laurentiis is unpredictable, he knows how to make decisions instinctively. Let`s not forget that he sent Ancelotti away, considering him a finished coach. And yet, we have all seen what Ancelotti has done since. You need to give a coach time to settle into a passionate, competent, but also very demanding environment like that of Naples. That being said, with De Laurentiis you have to expect anything. His character and his proverbial arrogance allow him to do as he pleases, and it is also right that way: he is the one who puts the money in.`
How do you comment on Fabio Capello`s words about Totti?
`Here in Rome, where I live, Totti is considered almost a sacred figure. Capello`s judgment seemed a bit too harsh and ungenerous to me, even though he is a man of great football knowledge. Totti was a great leader, endowed with extraordinary physical and technical strength. In the national team, perhaps, he did not express himself to the maximum, as happened to other great players, Mancini above all. However, he still made an important contribution, both with decisive goals and with his vision of the game. He was always available when called upon. For this reason, I repeat, Capello`s judgment seemed a bit ungenerous to me.`
Ewan Marwood