Serie A veteran Claudio Ranieri says it's unreasonable to expect Juventus Coach Max Allegri to win the Scudetto, whilst discussing Napoli, Roma and Fiorentina.
The former Juventus, Roma and Inter Coach was interviewed by Radio Anch'io Lo Sport on the current batch of Italian tacticians, and he showed immediate sympathy for the Partenopei's Maurizio Sarri.
Serie A veteran Claudio Ranieri says it's unreasonable to expect Juventus Coach Max Allegri to win the Scudetto, whilst discussing Napoli, Roma and Fiorentina.
The former Juventus, Roma and Inter Coach was interviewed by Radio Anch'io Lo Sport on the current batch of Italian tacticians, and he showed immediate sympathy for the Partenopei's Maurizio Sarri.
“I'm happy for Sarri, who recently made it to great levels,” he said. “And for Paulo Sousa too, who just needs to fix a few things at the European level, where he still can't quite find the right dimension.
“It's a very balanced championship and it may be more beautiful for this reason.
“The year in which I almost won the Scudetto with Roma was particular. We played an incredible season.
“15 minutes from the end we were in first place, then Inter won in Siena and we lost the Scudetto.
“We started from zero points and we had a great run, it was something beautiful that could have happened.
“Now it's a whole other Roma. There are many excellent teams, there is no club dominating over the others.
“Juventus? They lost the whole central axis of the team except for [goalkeeper Gianluigi] Buffon. I'm convinced they'll make it back to the top, but it's not easy to start again after the summer's sales.
“You can't expect Allegri to win the Scudetto again after losing [Carlos] Tevez, [Arturo] Vidal and [Andrea] Pirlo. You can't demand the title every year, this season is transitional.
“Roberto Mancini? While someone like Paulo Sousa came into a system that was already tried and tested, he had to change everything from the bottom to the top, so it's logical that he still has to find the right thread.
“Winning all the time, even if only 1-0, does a lot for your morale and your self-esteem. In due time he'll start playing well too.”
The 64-year-old famously had some poisonous exchanges with Premier League rival Jose Mourinho, but draws no pleasure from the Chelsea boss's struggles.
“The things that happened between us belong to the Stone Age. I only draw enjoyment from the things that are happening to us.
“Never in my life have I felt a sense of revenge when witnessing the trouble of others.”
Finally Ranieri was asked about Azzurri Coach Antonio Conte.
“He's doing a fantastic job, but coaching a national team is a titanic job.
“Often the clubs don't even want to give you the players, who get to you when they're already tired.
“I'm convinced he'll do everything, but I don't know if he'll manage to win Euro 2016.”