Pirlo out of Italy race, Malagò vows quick decision as Abodi feud erupts
FIGC president Giovanni Malagò hit back at sports minister Andrea Abodi after Andrea Pirlo's candidacy for the national team job collapsed, pledging to name a new head coach quickly.
The Pirlo collapse
Andrea Pirlo will not become the head coach of the Italian national team. The FIGC, the Italian football federation, decided not to pursue the path that would have brought the former midfielder to the bench. The decision followed the explosion of the Fonbet case, an agency linked to a Russian betting company for which Pirlo served as a global ambassador. Federation president Giovanni Malagò blocked the appointment, and Pirlo withdrew from the race.
War of words
Sports minister Andrea Abodi, speaking at an event in Piacenza, called the handling of the affair a bad impression. "The renunciation of Pirlo is news that speaks for itself," Abodi said. "It is a situation we would have wanted to see handled with more speed and a unity of purpose that was not there. Now we have to recover from a brutta figura."
Malagò, however, fired back as he left FIGC headquarters in Rome on 27 July.
Abodi parle di brutta figura? Bisogna vedere chi l'ha fatta.
The exchange sharpened a confrontation that had been building since the Pirlo option collapsed.
Hunt for a new coach
Malagò promised that a new name would arrive imminently, ahead of the Federal Council scheduled for 27 July. "We are working. A name will arrive soon," he told reporters, adding, "I'm sorry to disappoint, but I have nothing to declare; I have the league assembly in five minutes. I'm working, we are working." The council was expected to ratify a candidate, and the federation is racing to present a viable alternative.
- FIGC drops Pirlo as candidate over Fonbet links
- Malagò tells reporters a new coach will be named soon
- Federal Council meets to discuss and approve new head coach
Maldini and Leonardo on the brink
Paolo Maldini and Leonardo, installed by Malagò to shape the technical project, had pushed for Pirlo and may resign after the president vetoed their choice. Italian media report that both men are ready to leave, though no official confirmation has emerged. When asked about the executives' future, Malagò refused to elaborate: "I ask for your forgiveness; you will know everything soon."
The impasse leaves the national team's summer rebuild in limbo, with a coaching vacancy and a possible leadership vacuum at the top of the federation.
