Bonucci rules out immediate return to Italy national team in coaching role | OneFootball

EURO 2020 winner Leonardo Bonucci has ruled out an immediate return to the Italy national team set-up in a coaching capacity, but has revealed that he will begin working towards obtaining his coaching badges this summer.

Bonucci rules out immediate return to Italy national team set-up

The former Juventus and Azzurri centre-back is signed up to take part in the coaching courses at the national team headquarters at Coverciano this summer, but he intends to take a sabbatical to spend time with his family thereafter.

There had been some reports that he was being looked at over a potential appointment to Luciano Spalletti’s backroom staff, but Bonucci said himself that they were purely ‘rumours’ that had come out of thin air.

He also revealed that he looks up to two Italian coaches in particular, both of whom have taken charge of the Nazionale over the last decade.

“I will be taking the coaching course at Coverciano at the end of July, but my plan is to take a bit of time to rest, enjoy time with my family after the course,” he said in an interview with Cronache di Spogliatoio.

“I will tell you who I look up to. There are two in particular: Conte and Mancini. Conte for the tactical and technical aspects and for that desire to always get the best out of yourself, to go out and find that hunger.”

Bonucci admitted earlier in his interview that he had been disappointed not to make the cut for the EURO 2024 playing squad, suggesting that experience could have helped Spalletti and his players.

Read more from Bonucci on Italy’s EURO 2024 journey here.