Andrea Dossena says some Sunderland players arrived at training smelling of alcohol | OneFootball

“My goodness,” he said, when asked about Sunderland. “Some players would arrive at training still smelling of alcohol from the night before.”

He was speaking to Calciomercato. “I didn’t have a great relationship with coach [Gus] Poyet.”

“When I arrived, Di Canio was there,” Dossena said. “They sent me to Rome to get treatment for an injury, and when I got back to England I couldn’t find him.”

“He’d argued during a meeting, and Poyet had arrived in his place. I remember he never let us watch a match again to analyse it,” he added.

Dossena joined Sunderland in 2013 after leaving Napoli, where he had played in the Champions League and won the Coppa Italia. His spell brought seven Premier League appearances and three in the FA Cup.

He arrived under Paolo Di Canio, who departed soon after a difficult start to the season. Dossena struggled for minutes and even featured for the club’s under-21s.

Gus Poyet later steered Sunderland to survival and the 2014 League Cup final, where Manchester City won at Wembley.

Source: Sunderland Echo