a different looking Italy side<\/a>, one that reflects the population that they represent.<\/p>\nAdvertisement<\/p>\n
\u201cItaly is a country that has had a lot more immigration over the last 20 years, and that is reflected in the team,\u201d noted Baldini.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s true that we have a lot more input from kids with families who come from different places and cultures, but it is wonderful to see the integration in this side. It means they found a place where they belong and feel welcome. We can\u2019t just keep chasing history.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen I stepped into the training ground, I felt the responsibility of needing to be useful to these lads, as well as representing an entire nation. I want them to feel pride wearing that shirt, but also the courage and freedom to express what they can do without fear.\u201d<\/p>\n
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CREMONA, ITALY \u2013 OCTOBER 14: Coach Silvio Baldini of Italy listens to the national anthem during the UEFA Euro U21 Qualification match between Italy and Armenia at Stadio Giovanni Zini on October 14, 2025 in Cremona, Italy. (Photo by Marco M. Mantovani\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n
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When asked who he would dedicate a victory to as Italy coach, Baldini\u2019s answer was surprising, and saw him end the press conference early as he was about to break down in tears.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt may seem odd, but it wouldn\u2019t be a person, rather a dog. I know it\u2019s strange, but I was out of coaching for six years, and he never saw me as someone who had to provide results, he just had perfect loyalty.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s crazy, when my father died, he was 86 and it was a natural thing, I didn\u2019t feel like crying as much as I do when thinking of that dog. He was my daughter\u2019s dog, really. A Maremma Sheepdog.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m sorry, I have to stop, because it\u2019s getting pathetic, crying like this. In a way I am glad that I told you all, but on the other hand I know that in the world of football there will be denigration and mockery, and that would bring out a furious side of me.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Silvio Baldini gave an unusual press conference ahead of his debut as interim Italy coach in the friendly…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":7693,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[4],"tags":[2070,2071,2073,408,5,2069,2072],"class_list":["post-7692","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-luxembourg","tag-baldini","tag-cremona","tag-dog","tag-italy","tag-luxembourg","tag-silvio-baldini","tag-stadio-giovanni-zini"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@lu\/116682405178149242","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/lu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7692","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/lu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/lu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/lu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/lu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=7692"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/lu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7692\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/lu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/7693"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/lu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=7692"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/lu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=7692"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/lu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=7692"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
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