Roberto Mancini is the national team coach, Claudio Ranieri the technical director . They are the men called upon to revive Italian football, or at least bring it back to the World Cup after three failed editions. This was announced by FIGC president Giovanni Malagò at the end of the Federal Council meeting.

"Time was running out, and I felt Mancini was the right person," Malagò said at a press conference after announcing his choices to the Board. "I needed someone to share the coach's decision, because if he hadn't been chosen, my reasoning would have been meaningless. We needed someone to become the technical director and president of Club Italia. The person with whom these decisions were shared is Claudio Ranieri, who just a few minutes ago assured me of his commitment and is arriving from Calabria ."

Tomorrow at 6:00 PM, Mancini and Ranieri will officially present their teams at a press conference. Malagò declined to provide contract figures , but said that "the financial resources of both parties are positive, once they sit down at the table."

Ranieri, Cagliari's former miracle coach, refused a call-up to the national team last year because he had a role in Roma's management, an experience that later ended following disagreements with coach Gian Piero Gasperini.

For Roberto Mancini, however, it's a return to the Azzurri: after the triumphant 2021 European Championships and the dramatic exclusion from the 2022 World Cup, he hastily left the national team to settle in Saudi Arabia . A hasty departure that sparked controversy, was seen as a betrayal by many and even drew criticism from Ranieri himself ("I would never have gone to Saudi Arabia, I still like having incentives other than money") . Mancini received a huge contract (€25 million a year) to coach the Saudi national team, but the sporting experience was disappointing: it ended after just over a year with a mutually agreed termination of the contract and less than satisfactory results.

That episode, Malagò said, was taken into consideration: " . It's clear that all possible assessments have been made."