Gattuso: My dream is the World Cup, I took the Italy job at once | OneFootball

The head coach on Vivo Azzurro TV: “So far, the team has always given everything. In March, we must not see ghosts at the first difficulty,” reports Sportmediaset.

Italy, Gattuso: “My obsession is to go to the World Cup. I immediately accepted the role of head coach and…”

Rino Gattuso gave a long interview to Vivo Azzurro TV during which he talked about his first six months on the national team bench and the March playoffs where Italy will compete for a spot in the World Cup. “When I was offered the position of head coach, I immediately said yes, without asking myself what the pros and cons were,” explained the Italian head coach, former Napoli coach.

I accepted and I don’t regret it. I am proud to represent my country. I feel privileged, a very lucky man. I have the opportunity to coach the Italian national team, and I think millions of people would like to be in my position. I have a lot of responsibility, but I’ve had responsibility since I was twelve: when I went to Perugia, I stayed in a room, and the thought was that I couldn’t go home, otherwise I would have failed. I’ve been living with pressure all my life, and I hope to give my best and bring joy to all of Italy with my boys.”

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Six matches, five wins, and only one defeat: this is the record of Gattuso’s first six months as head coach, who took over a national team wounded by the disastrous fall in Oslo against Norway, lifting it in spirit and restoring a strong identity and character: “I knew I had taken on a great responsibility and that it wasn’t easy, but I must say that in the six matches we played, except for the last one where we made mistakes in the second half, the players gave everything. The team has always been ready. I’ve seen very positive attitudes, a positive mentality, and a great sense of belonging. I found a group of guys who are trying to give everything they have. I think it shows.”

Now the focus is all on the March playoffs: first the semifinal with Northern Ireland and then, possibly, the winner of the match between Wales and Bosnia. “We must not make the same mistake as four years ago with North Macedonia. Modern football says that easy matches no longer exist, that an opponent can always put you in difficulty,” warned Gattuso. “The important thing is to know how to react, not to go down if something negative happens, but to maintain continuity for ninety minutes. In three months, we will be playing for something important, the whole nation is waiting for us. We need calmness; we must arrive with the right mentality and love for the country we represent and for this jersey. Let’s make sure we’re ready for what awaits us.”

For Gattuso, the World Cup, where Italy has been absent since 2014, is an obsession: “The obsession is to go to the World Cup, to return where we have been for many years, even as protagonists. We must want it at all costs, not start seeing ghosts at the first difficulty.”

It’s too early to think about Northern Ireland, better to focus on the present: “I have to live day by day. I’m no longer the Gattuso of the past, the one who had a goal and prepared only for that. Today I am a different person, I do a completely different job. I am the first to have to provide calmness, I must make as few mistakes as possible and make the right choices. If I started thinking about the March match now, I wouldn’t arrive clear-headed. Clarity and energy must be spent today on what we are going to see, on what our football proposes, and on the choices we have to make. When we arrive at Coverciano, in those ten days, we will dedicate ourselves to preparing the match in the best way.”

From now until March, together with his assistants, Gattuso will follow all the eligible players with maximum attention: “I will live these three months working. Traveling and watching matches. And then talking to my boys. I talk to them often, not just the veterans. I like chatting with them, I stay very much in contact with them.”

Speaking of his players, Gattuso appreciates their strength and willingness to sacrifice: “We have strong players, even though it’s a fact that there are few Italians in our league. In these months, I have greatly appreciated the sacrifices made by the boys, there are those who have been unwell and stayed with us the whole time. In my career, I have often arrived at Coverciano on crutches. That’s how it should be; a group isn’t created by being together only three or four days.”

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇮🇹 here.