The dedication is all for Napoli and the Napoli with which Luciano Spalletti won a historic championship and today won him the Golden Bench, voted by 42 colleagues out of the 61 present, as the best coach of the last Serie A championship.
The current coach of the national team preceded Inter player Simone Inzaghi and AC Milan player Stefano Pioli, winner of the last edition.
In the afternoon, Spalletti himself, for the refresher course, held a lesson on 'Relational and positional football' with reference to the recent Club World Cup final between Manchester City and Fluminense.
For him it is the second Golden Bench after the one he received 18 years ago, when he led Udinese.
"The first thank you goes to my Napoli players for an over the top season, to the club led by president De Laurentiis, to director Giuntoli, my collaborators and of course to the city with all the fans. What a thrill to see the video and images again of this borderless celebration in which everyone participated."
His career began a long time ago "when my brother carried my bag for me and now I am in Heaven leading the national team. Even though it is not an easy moment for Italian football, I see many good colleagues, among the best in the world, receiving from The Golden Bench requires me to be an ever better coach. However, I hope that in the future others will win it, I already have too many - he smiled - Where do I feel I have improved in recent years? I have always woken up early in the morning, I went to see my colleagues from whom I learned a lot and I dedicated a lot of time to football. We need to continually evolve and try to always make the players feel comfortable because we alone don't win anything, they're the ones who throw the ball in."
For further information Agenzia ANSA Golden bench for Luciano Spalletti - Football - Ansa.it The current Azzurri coach with the most votes for the Scudetto with Napoli (ANSA)
A thought for Gigi Riva (''He used his character to give to others'') before talking about the national team with a European perspective: once the hypothesis of an internship has faded, the first meeting of 2024 will start from 18-19 March with friendly matches in the United States with Peru and Ecuador.
"I started thinking about the European Championship from the first phone call from president Gravina. I can't make any promises but I'm convinced that our players will be able to demonstrate the reasons why our opponents will be afraid to face us.
In competitions, Italy always manages to have the strength that comes from its history and from the players who have worn the shirt, we must be convinced that we can play good, high-level football." On the center forward problem ("Scamacca? Raspadori? I don't forget Kean who showed that he is strong") Spalletti reiterated a concept that is close to his heart: "If any player needs to be stimulated they can stay at home, I don't stimulate anyone.
If I call someone and then I also have to stimulate them, it means I made a mistake in calling them.
I need certainties.
When you wear the blue shirt, which is the most beautiful of all, the motivations must come by themselves, you don't come here dressed up hoping to have the wind in your favor or the field going downhill". And who knows, maybe in the near future he might decide to invite the tennis champion Jannik Sinner to Coverciano: ''I want to talk to him, he has that simplicity, humanity, that being a quiet boy who has made work and humility his greatest strength. There will be things to absorb from him from which then all come out stronger."
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