Preziosi: "200 million wasted on football, I'm ashamed. I'll tell you about Messi and Lewandowski"


Enrico Preziosi, former president of Genoa and Como, spoke last night at the Sportitalia studios, addressing various aspects of Italian football: "My experience in Genoa was quite unstable, at a certain point fatigue enters into managing things. You want to do more and better, but if you stop to think, you end up taking a step back. This football does not belong to me at all, there has been a drastic evolution in the last 8-10 years and I expect worse results for the Italians: all the investors are foreigners and their only objective is the profit. But in our football it is very difficult for this to happen, and I fear that some will start to run away: Italy is not the United States. The system designed, including by us presidents, who are probably primarily responsible, was destined to fail. And sport must continue to be sport: when it is too steeped in politics, it cannot grow because someone pulls the string." "How would you position yourself in the FIGC elections?" "I wouldn't have voted for Malagò at all: we changed not to change, just to be unclear. He's been in the sport for 65 years, he can take a step back and make room for young people. For me, Abete was more suitable, if I had to choose, I would have chosen him." "How much money did you throw away on football?" "I'm ashamed... We're around 200 million euros, a little less. In Como around 40, the rest in Genoa. There's talk of surpluses, but Genoa has revenues of 40 million and the team plus structure costs 75-80: if you don't make a minimum, and often you don't, you can't amortize it. Everyone remembers Milito or Thiago Motta, but we had to deal with the packages. A club like that always starts at a disadvantage." "In football, however, it seems to be welcome." "Gasperini always hugs me when he sees me and some of the players do too. I believe I left a trail of empathy and dialogue, even if sometimes I seem a little grumpy. But sometimes you do that to protect yourself." "Were you upset about losing Lewandowski?" "A lot, and you also know about Messi. Lewandowski had practically already signed the contract with us (from Genoa, ed), he even came to watch a game after taking the exams. But then the agent, by surprise, changed the commissions: these things also happen. The moral of the story is that I said the player had to leave. And I regretted it bitterly, it was a commission of 500 thousand euros on a deal worth 4.5 million. The most serious thing is that I would do it again, the problem was the reaction to violating the rules." "And with Messi, how was it?" "That was back in the days of Como. He called me, sending a video of a boy who had the ball stuck to his feet in a potato field. So he came with his father, it was a 50 thousand dollar operation at the time. I went from Hong Kong, and Gentile and Imborgia told me that this one couldn't play football, that he was too small. The following year, he went to Barcelona, ​​​​there they lengthened his bones and he's still playing today." "What do you think about the world of agents?" "If someone wanted to realistically tell it, it would be to get rid of these people: they blackmail, go to families and threaten. I'm not going to name names because I want to live in peace now." "Who was your ideal coach?" "The only good coach I had was Gasperini. And that's it. Why so many times Ballardini? That's the stubbornness inmake mistakes, and then there's the square." "And about Sampdoria, what do you think?" "Last year was shameful what happened. In Brescia, Cellino had to give up and flee, probably because he was not well regarded by the system. That's why I say that sport is often permeated with other things. Sampdoria had been relegated, they were supposed to make Serie C, but evidently there was something more." "Can you give some notes?" "Galliani is a friend, grade 9. Cairo 3 and that's a lot. Lotito I would give the average. Cellino also a 6, no more. Zamparini 7.5. I give Moratti 9 too. Moggi... Luciano is a friend, 7. Sensi is a 9. Berlusconi 10. Andrea Agnelli, I like him, so I give him 8. Elkann 6." "Foul De Laurentiis." "I give it a rating of 4 minus minus. He is unfriendly to me, he is arrogant. Professionally, applause, but I would never have dinner with him." "But is it true that you were close to acquiring Torino?" “Yes, at the time, I don’t remember why it got cold. There was a bit of chaos, even before Como. There was something I wasn't allowed." "With Galliani, you fought, for Lapadula." "That's why I didn't give him 10! I saw he was with Carnevali the other day: Giovanni is a serious person and I told him to get carte blanche. If so, little by little he will revert to Juventus, in silence."


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