Daniele De Rossi deflected questions about a potential Italy coaching role with characteristic dry humour on Friday, but the Genoa head coach made no attempt to hide the personal pain of watching close friends and former teammates suffer through another World Cup elimination.
Read Football Italia Ad-Free and get access to Exclusive News – Free Trial – Click Here
Asked at his pre-match press conference whether the FIGC had already been in touch about taking over as national team manager, De Rossi raised a smile.
“I wasn’t expecting that question, I thought you wanted to talk about Italian football’s programme,” he said, via TuttoMercatoWeb.
“I had prepared myself not to answer.”
He was equally reluctant to add his voice to the wave of public commentary that has flooded Italian football since the Bosnia defeat.
“I think too many people are talking: ex-players, journalists, butchers, delicatessen owners. I am focused on keeping Genoa up, and adding more words to this soup of chatter doesn’t feel particularly important.”
De Rossi: ‘Italy failure not a matter of a coach’s bravery’
His one concession to emotion was genuine and heartfelt.
“What I am left with is the sadness of seeing so many of my friends destroyed, and so many players I grew up alongside as teammates. That sadness stays with me.”
It was a reminder that behind the political noise and institutional drama, the human cost of Italy’s failure is felt most acutely by those closest to the players involved.
On the broader question of whether Italian clubs lack the courage to give young players meaningful opportunities, De Rossi pushed back against oversimplification.
“We could generalise and trivialise the concept if we spoke only about courage,” he said.
“Every player has their own path.”
He pointed to his own record at Genoa, promoting Fini and Venturino while protecting Ekhator from offers and fighting to keep Pisilli at Roma, who has since earned a senior international call-up, as evidence that the issue is more nuanced than a simple lack of bravery from coaches.
“The real courage comes in June,” he added, “when you start from 0-0 and fate tells you whether it paid off.”
