Former Inter head coach Simone Inzaghi has expressed confidence that Italian football “will recover” despite its recent failure to qualify for the World Cup for the third consecutive time. However, he has firmly ruled himself out of contention to replace Gennaro Gattuso as the Italy national team’s head coach, citing his existing contract with Al-Hilal.
Inzaghi, who previously managed Lazio and Inter and now leads Al-Hilal in the Saudi Pro League, is celebrating his 50th birthday. He is approaching the end of his first season with Al-Hilal, a team currently in second place in the Saudi Pro League, trailing Cristiano Ronaldo’s Al-Nassr by five points with seven matches remaining.
In an interview published on his birthday, Inzaghi praised his current environment, stating: “It’s a fantastic situation in Saudi Arabia from all points of view: The lifestyle, the sporting and non-sporting infrastructure, the calmness that accompanies you even in a stressful job like mine.”
Inzaghi Reflects on Italy’s Struggles and His Career Choices
The conversation soon turned to Italy’s latest failure to qualify for the World Cup, which occurred following their penalty shoot-out defeat against Bosnia and Herzegovina earlier this week.
“I’m very sorry that Italy won’t be at the World Cup for the third time in a row,” Inzaghi remarked. He added, “I’m 100% Italian, my brother also won a World Cup. Italian football will recover, I’m sure of it. Having said that, I left Italian football for a number of reasons.”
While a significant increase in wages was widely perceived as the primary reason for Inzaghi’s move to the Saudi Pro League, he insists it was not the sole motivation behind his decision to leave Italy.
“Wrong,” he countered, addressing the perception of financial motivation. “Earning a lot is a pleasure, obviously, but other factors pushed me here. Fortunately, I didn’t need money.”
He further elaborated on his motivations: “The desire to try a completely new experience in a completely new environment. The years I had at Inter were very satisfying from a professional point of view, but also very stressful. I felt the need to experience football at a high level, but to unplug from a load of pressure that had become very heavy.”
Despite speculation in Italian media suggesting Inzaghi as a potential candidate to replace Gennaro Gattuso as the national team coach, he has definitively ruled himself out of consideration.
“I’m flattered,” he confirmed, “but as I said, I’m fine here and I have another year on my contract with Al-Hilal.”