'Football ruined my life!' - Luciano Spalletti kept 'awake at night' and can't escape horrors of Italy sacking as coach reflects on his 'mistake'

Spalletti was sacked as Italy boss in June following his side's shock defeat to Norway in their first World Cup qualifying match. He departed under acrimonious circumstances, announcing his sacking before his final game in charge against Moldova as he insisted he would never have quit his post.

Spalletti, who was appointed in 2023, had a good start to his tenure as national team boss as the Azzurri qualified for Euro 2024. However, Italy were knocked out of the competition in the round of 16 and went on to suffer their worst defeat in a qualifying stage, losing 3-0 to Norway, hammering the final nail in his coffin. Spalletti oversaw 24 matches in charge, guiding the team to 12 wins, six draws and as many defeats. Now, over a month since his exit, he has opened up on the lingering trauma and reflected on his mistakes.

In a conversation with Repubblica, Spalletti shed light on his situation, saying: "Football ruined my life. I loved football more than myself , I sacrificed the people dearest to me for it."

Speaking on his team's defeat against Norway, the ex-Inter manager said: "It never goes away. It keeps me awake at night, it affects everything, because the thought always comes back to that . Sometimes I feel like I'm happy, but then after a moment that thing comes back to me. I wasn't able to make the boys understand that I loved them.

"Was accepting the job a mistake? No. Also because the national team doesn't ask, the national team calls. You don't choose whether to accept, there's no rational reflection to make. When the national team calls, you have to puff yourself out and make yourself fully available... Well, maybe this is one of the concepts we're losing.

"My mistake was, at the beginning, to push too hard on this sense of belonging, of identity. Asking to sing the anthem. To have a rallying cry before every practice. I wanted to stimulate that pride I felt, but it was too much. The coach has a fundamental role, he must be able to see, listen, 'feel'. And get a message across. He must be the influencer of the locker room."

With Gennaro Gattuso at the helm, Italy will hope to book a place in next year's World Cup. The ex-AC Milan midfielder was not the first choice for the job, with Claudio Ranieri and Stefano Pioli turning down offers from the Italian Football Federation.

Additional reporting by Vittorio Rotondaro.