Capello analyses Italy’s youth issue: ‘We don’t have suitable teachers’
Fabio Capello has given his latest opinion on the national side and the state of Italian football as a whole, and believes that there is a fundamental issue with the way that youth teams operate in Italy: ‘You can’t demand the kids to follow the same programmes as the professionals’.
The mood surrounding the Italy national team remains at an all-time low following Tuesday night’s penalty shoot-out defeat against Bosnia and Herzegovina, which cost the Azzurri a place at the World Cup for the third tournament cycle in a row.
Capello, speaking in an interview with La Gazzetta dello Sport, believes that Italy had more than enough chances to win the game against Bosnia, but says that the defeat and the failure to qualify for three consecutive World Cups points to much deeper issues.
“We could have won the match against Bosnia because we made mistakes, but if we can’t qualify even after the expansion of the World Cup, it means that we have problems,” the former Milan, Roma, Real Madrid and England coach said.
“We have to do something different, look for another way, because mistakes have been made and we’re paying for them. Failing to qualify three times in a row means that there is a disease that has not been cured.”
Among the issues that Capello has identified is the fact that there is not enough cohesion between the Italy national side and the players’ domestic clubs.
“Once upon a time, the national team was made up of ‘blocks’ from club sides, but now the players are scattered about. Without those blocks, there’s a lack of team spirit. Gattuuso tried to bring them closer together, he tried to create a group, but it’s difficult in these conditions.”
Capello was asked if he thinks that Italy’s biggest issues come on a technical, physical or mental level.
He replied: “The national team is the mirror of the national championship. In Italy, you walk and jog. In other countries they run and sprint. If they go and play a game where you have to sprint, they’re not used to it and get into difficulty.
“They need to think first, have the technique to anticipate the passage of play, to control the ball quickly, all things that we do in Italy that are not up to the pace at an international level.
Capello on Italy’s youth team problems: ‘You can’t demand the kids to follow the same programmes as the professionals’
Capello believes that Italy has a fundamental issue with its youth set-ups across the nation and believes that for years, there has not been enough focus on technique. He says that it is laughable that so many youth sides in Italy follow the same or similar training programmes as the senior professionals.
“The most serious mistake lies in the youth sectors, where they’re coming up with ‘schemes’ at 12 years old. I enjoy it when I speak to some of them, I ask: ‘Do you have kids that enjoy playing football’, ‘Yes’. ‘Do they make the same schemes as the professionals?’, ‘Yes’, everyone replies happily. Well, I’d get rid of those coaches.
“You can’t demand the kids to follow the same programmes as the professionals. Let them have fun, but teach them how to kick the ball.
“Do you know what the issue is? It’s easier to come up with these diagrams than it is to teach technique. That’s where we’ve been lacking. We don’t have suitable teachers. They have to understand players’ defects, the changes in height, the difference in sizes of feet, not everyone is the same. Teach, watch, understand.”
As for the national team, Capello admits that there is no guarantee of an immediate turnaround under the next head coach.
“They won’t be able to do much, they will have to be lucky enough to have a group with the spirit and quality to put it all together.
“Based on the characteristics available, they will have to invent a new team. The truth is that there is a lack of quality. To start again, we need a 10-year plan and to start on that immediately.”
Capello admits that there is absolutely no chance that he himself becomes involved with the FIGC again, though: “At my age? Are you crazy?”
