Paolo Maldini and Leonardo have reportedly resigned from their roles with the Italian football federation in the wake of Andrea Pirlo’s appointment as Italy head coach falling through.
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Both figures had recently taken on roles as part of an overhaul of the national team management. Maldini was appointed on 11 July as technical director of the Italian federation, to help to rebuild the national side after they failed to qualify for a third successive World Cup finals tournament. But he has stepped down just 16 days later alongside Leonardo, the former Brazil international who had been brought in as his adviser.
Their exits come shortly after Pirlo said he was no longer in the running to coach the Italy side. His prospective appointment was the subject of fierce opposition over his commercial ties to a Russian betting company, Fonbet. The former Italy midfielder wrote on Instagram on Monday that he had “heard last night that I’m no longer the candidate for the Italy national team job”.
The double departure creates an immediate crisis for the newly appointed federation president, Giovanni Malagò. It leaves the federation without a clear national team strategy at its lowest ebb in nearly 40 years, following early European exits for Italian clubs last season and another failure to qualify for the World Cup finals tournament.
Pirlo had been Maldini’s primary choice for the job after Pep Guardiola rejected the federation’s initial approach. Several other high-profile managers are now being linked with the vacancy, including Roberto Mancini, Thiago Motta and Antonio Conte.
