Lippi wants Liga future

Former Italy Coach Marcello Lippi has confirmed his football comeback could be in Spain next season.

“I’d very much like to be a Coach in La Liga. It’s a type of football that I enjoy,” said the 2006 World Cup winner on RAI Uno programme ‘Porta a Porta’.

“I haven’t received any offers from Italian clubs, but I did get plenty of interest from abroad. However, I don’t intend to resume work in the next few months.”

Lippi surprised many when he resigned from his post just days after winning the most prestigious trophy in the sport, although once again he hinted that it was the pre-tournament Calciopoli scandal – and attempts to implicate him in it – that soured the situation.

“Guido Rossi had asked me to stay on. I said enough was enough, because I didn’t consider all that controversy to be healthy. I earned my place at the World Cup, so I didn’t feel I should be put under pressure to give that up. Besides, there were other factors that also pushed me to quit after the tournament. It was a two-year experience and the end of a natural cycle.”

New Italy boss Roberto Donadoni also admitted this week he had offered to resign following the dreadful start to his campaign, but Lippi defended his heir.

“Donadoni is a wise and capable Coach. I am sure that he’ll slowly emerge from this situation and with the strength of this squad can give Italy some magic moments.”

The Azzurri lifted the World Cup after a penalty shoot-out with France, but it could be the last time this happens. FIFA President Sepp Blatter has urged for major games to be replayed or decided by taking more and more players off the field.

“In my view a penalty kick is a technical test, not a lottery. It’s difficult that a team which didn’t deserve it will emerge on top after a shoot-out. It would be complicated to replay a match of that magnitude and with such a tight international schedule.”

Lippi’s greatest club achievements were at Juventus, who have been demoted as a result of the Calciopoli scandal and stripped of their last two Scudetto titles.

“I really didn’t expect them to be in Serie B, but considering what happened, the club hierarchy took the decision with dignity and the right determination, which is typical of Juventus.”