Italy supervisor Luciano Spalletti BANS headphones forward of Euro 2024
- Italy boss Luciano Spalletti is a stickler for discipline and has enforced new rules
- Spalletti’s men are not favoured to retain the trophy they won three years ago
- LISTEN to It’s All Kicking Off! Why Euro 2024 could give us an ‘old school’ tournament once again
Luciano Spalletti has banned his players from wearing headphones and imposed strict limits on gaming as he tries to help Italy remain European champions.
The Azzurri boss is a stickler for discipline and has wasted no time in letting his squad know they are in Germany for work – even frowning on too much laughing and joking during training sessions ahead of their tournament opener against Albania on Saturday.
Spalletti’s men are not favoured to retain the trophy they won three years ago, after a troubled qualifying campaign. Roberto Mancini was replaced by Spalletti midway through it, after he quit to sign a huge contract as Saudi Arabia boss.
But Spalletti, who led Napoli to the Serie A title a year ago, has wasted no time stamping his mark on the national side. Soon after he was appointed he presented his players with a copy of Legacy, which details the secrets behind the enduring success of the New Zealand All Blacks in rugby union.
The most famous of these is the team’s ‘No d***heads’ policy and Spalletti quoted the phrase last October when outlining his plans for the task in hand.
Luciano Spalletti has banned headphones and imposed strict limits on Italy players gaming
The reigning champions are gearing up to face Albania in their first Euros clash on Saturday
Punctuality is key for Spalletti, who stops his players from using phones at mealtimes. Tactical meetings take place at midday with lunch at 12.45 before afternoon training, and dinner at 8. Consoles can be played only in the games room of the team hotel near Dortmund, with players prevented from taking their own to their rooms.
Former West Ham striker Gianluca Scamacca fell foul of Spalletti’s iron fist when he was left out of a mini-tournament in the USA earlier this year, with Spalletti explaining: ‘You don’t come here to play videogames until 4am. From now on they leave their consoles at home and they won’t bring them again.’
Italy hope to create their own fun this evening/on Saturday night but it won’t be easy against Albania with Spalletti’s men lacking bite in attack, though the likely return of key midfielder Nicolo Barella can only help.
