There’s still no peace between the “old†and “young†faction in the Italian national team as Buffon and Cassano have both added fuel to the fire in recent interviews. Buffon denied addressing Balotelli in his post-match interview. Cassano, on the other side, criticized the older players’ attitude and their desire to control everything inside the team.
Gigi Buffon was the first to speak. In an interview with Corriere della Sera, the national team captain tried to clarify the words he pronounced right after the elimination (“Somebody didn’t do well their job, it’s always the older players who push the team forwardâ€). Many saw an indirect reference to Balotelli in those words, setting up a fiery debate. This is how he handled it: “In twenty years I never verbally assaulted a teammate, and Mario at 24 is not a young player anywayâ€. However, he didn’t change his mind about the age question: “I often hear sarcastic comments about my age or Barzagli’s or Pirlo’s or De Rossi’s. But words are not facts. The facts show that it’s always us who work the hardest for the teamâ€. He then added: “Often young players are charged with more responsibility than they can handle. If a young boy has the talent to become a champion, you don’t send him in the national team after three, four good matches. You leave him to gain experience in Serie A firstâ€.
It didn’t take Antonio Cassano long to answer. The Bari-born striker, according to Repubblica, has taken the young players’ defense against the senators. “They always want to decide about everything. We did our job and gave everything to it. I can’t stand the fact that Buffon and his friends are always moralizing and dividing the good from the badâ€. He didn’t stop there: “If we had won, they would have taken all the credit. Instead we lost, and it’s all our fault. After all, we mustn’t forget that the only match we won, Buffon wasn’t playingâ€, he ended.
Gigi Buffon was the first to speak. In an interview with Corriere della Sera, the national team captain tried to clarify the words he pronounced right after the elimination (“Somebody didn’t do well their job, it’s always the older players who push the team forwardâ€). Many saw an indirect reference to Balotelli in those words, setting up a fiery debate. This is how he handled it: “In twenty years I never verbally assaulted a teammate, and Mario at 24 is not a young player anywayâ€. However, he didn’t change his mind about the age question: “I often hear sarcastic comments about my age or Barzagli’s or Pirlo’s or De Rossi’s. But words are not facts. The facts show that it’s always us who work the hardest for the teamâ€. He then added: “Often young players are charged with more responsibility than they can handle. If a young boy has the talent to become a champion, you don’t send him in the national team after three, four good matches. You leave him to gain experience in Serie A firstâ€.
It didn’t take Antonio Cassano long to answer. The Bari-born striker, according to Repubblica, has taken the young players’ defense against the senators. “They always want to decide about everything. We did our job and gave everything to it. I can’t stand the fact that Buffon and his friends are always moralizing and dividing the good from the badâ€. He didn’t stop there: “If we had won, they would have taken all the credit. Instead we lost, and it’s all our fault. After all, we mustn’t forget that the only match we won, Buffon wasn’t playingâ€, he ended.