Football
Ben Gladwell, Italy correspondent 8y

Torino coach Giampiero Ventura coy about Italy speculation

The frontrunner to succeed Antonio Conte as Italy coach, Giampiero Ventura, has hinted that an announcement over his future is imminent, telling reporters to "wait and see" if he will be the one chosen to lead Italy to the 2018 World Cup.

The Torino coach says he is honoured to be linked with the position, which becomes vacant after Euro 2016 when Conte takes over at Chelsea, and he spoke at length about what his plans would be as coach of his country. However, he stopped short of admitting he is already in talks with the Italian Football Association.

"Nothing has been discussed yet so you are asking me about something which doesn't exist," Ventura told Sky Sport at an awards ceremony in Soriano nel Cimino.

"At the end of the season, I said I was very angry because I didn't think Torino's season had been good enough.

"If something had not happened which should never have happened, we would have been competing with Sassuolo [for a place in Europe] and I still have this anger pent up inside me and I can't wait to release it, but now we have to see where, how and when.

"The papers are talking about [the Italy job] and I'm absolutely gratified by it. There's no coach who would not be proud.

"I'm pleased to be linked with the Italy job -- it's a role anybody would like, but there's nothing definite yet. Let's just wait and see what happens."

Ventura, 68, does not feel too old to do the job, though, and he feels he might be the right man to get the best out of a talented group of emerging Italian players.

Both Italy's under-17 and under-19 selections reached their respective European Championships this summer and Ventura says he would tap into that talent to reform the national team.

"I'm a coach who thrives on adrenaline and emotion," he said. "There is no such thing as a young coach and a less young coach -- there are coaches with more ideas and coaches with fewer.

"This is a negative moment for the national team because there are fewer and fewer Italian players around -- if none of them are playing, it's hard for them to improve.

"You need the courage to play them. I think there are far more talented young players around than people think, lads who can create the spine of this national team.

"I had eight out of 11 players this season under the age of 24, but certainly you've got to give them time.

"When you build a club, you look for the players with the characteristics you need for you system whereas with the national team you've got to pick the best players and build a system around them.

"Tactics are the primary weapon and Italy are ahead of other nations in this sense."

Italy are hoping to announce the successor to Conte before the European Championship begins, to avoid speculation interfering with the tournament.

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