Italy FA calls for major overhaul
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Irene - Italian FA president Giancarlo Abete has called for a serious analysis of the national sport following the defending champion's dismal first-round elimination from the World Cup.
Italy's 3-2 loss to Slovakia on Thursday marked the first time the Azzurri has exited the World Cup without winning a game, and the 2006 champions didn't win at all in 2010.
"We all know the importance of football in our country and we've disappointed tens of millions of fans," Abete said Friday. "We have to be realists. These are the facts. We need to reflect on the structural crisis of Italian football."
Abete said he would introduce new coach Cesare Prandelli on July 1, and confirmed that the former Fiorentina manager would lead the team through the 2014 World Cup.
"We've got to develop a strategy to start over. This problem didn't begin yesterday," Abete added. "It's been going on for a while. We have the duty to start over."
Nine players on Italy's squad were 30 or over, led by 36-year-old captain Fabio Cannavaro, and Prandelli will be charged with a major overhaul.
"Prandelli was chosen for his skills at working with younger players," Abete said. "And it is noteworthy that we're signing him to a four-year deal. We're looking ahead long term."
Abete lamented the large number of foreign players in Italy's Serie A, referring to how Inter Milan won this year's Champions League without a single Italian player in its starting lineup.
"These problems don't involve just Italian football, it's a Europe-wide problem," Abete said. "We don't have enough players with international experience."
Abete said he would put a priority on developing younger players and improving relationships with the country's clubs, coaches and youth programs.
"The European Union and UEFA have also got to realize what the problem is, because if we can't develop this sport better, the risks won't affect just one or two federations but all the European teams," he said. "We've already seen how much the European powers have struggled at this World Cup and how well the South Americans are doing."
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