Italy technical director Paolo Maldini has disclosed that former Man City manager Pep Guardiola was deeply interested in the Italy national job, analyzing youth squads and sketching potential lineups before ultimately declining due to exhaustion rather than financial demands.
Maldini stated that Guardiola studied player pools from the U17 level upward and actively drafted prospective formations.
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He noted that money was not an obstacle, with Guardiola telling them to pay him one euro less than the previous coach,” Maldini told Football Italia.
“With Guardiola, we studied the squads, from the U17s upwards. He even started writing the lineups.
“Money was not a factor as Guardiola told us: ‘Give me one euro less than the last national team coach was earning and I’m ready’.
“He was tired after 10 exhausting years in the Premier League. He didn’t turn down the job because of money.”
There had been questions asked about the suggested appointment of Pirlo to the role of Italy head coach given that his coaching CV pails in comparison to the likes of Guardiola and Ancelotti.
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“We wanted a young coach committed to our project with sufficient pedigree. Technically, Pirlo impressed me greatly. With a technical director and consultant supporting him, he would have been ideal.”
However, Pirlo’s previous agreement with a Russian betting company complicated matters: “It certainly created obstacles. We didn’t know initially. Public opinion played a role, but legally there was nothing preventing him from coaching Italy.”
“People exaggerated it. Pirlo was willing to terminate the betting company contract—he’s an honorable person who didn’t deserve that backlash. Some invoked moral standards and dignity codes, but if they genuinely wanted him, legal issues wouldn’t have stopped it.”
