Claudio Ranieri has reportedly turned down the chance to take control of the Italian national team, as per Football Italia.
The former Chelsea, Leicester and Roma boss had been in talks with the Azzurri after they parted ways with Luciano Spalletti earlier this month with Italy at risk of missing next summer’s World Cup.
Italy are third in their qualifying group, three points off Israel and nine off Norway after their first two games, and could fail to reach a third successive World Cup.
It would be a huge blow to a nation who have won the competition four times, with only Brazil achieving more glory in football’s greatest competition.
Ranieri had been linked to the job after an impressive six months at Roma, however it would appear that he has turned down the opportunity due to fears he could not balance his new advisory role to owner Daniel Friedkin and coaching duties.
The report in Football Italia suggested that Italy were happy for Ranieri to carry out both roles, but the 73-year-old was not so convinced.
Claudio Ranieri has reportedly turned down the chance to take over as Italy’s new manager
The Azzurri are at risk of missing out on a third consecutive World Cup and are third in the qualifying group
Luciano Spalletti has left after an underwhelming spell in charge of the four-time World Cup winners
The outlet also suggests that former AC Milan boss Stefano Pioli is a strong contender to take over though he has already held talks with Fiorentina.
Spalletti departed after a 2-0 win over Moldova, but his side’s place in the qualifying group was seemingly deemed too precarious to risk not taking proactive measures.
‘It’s true, we struggled tonight too. However, there are too many components behind this. And we confirmed what we’d seen before,’ Spalletti told RAI Sport.
‘I maintained this group, but I found them really fatigued at this stage of the season. Perhaps seeking someone in better physical shape might’ve helped, but the fact we have 25 players all a bit like this means the campaign really took it out on everyone.
‘One of the biggest problems was playing the very first game, the most difficult of the group in Oslo, right at the end of the season. It’s bad luck with the draw.
‘This will be a very different team in much better shape come September, so the timing didn’t help us.’
