Football
Selene Scarsi 8y

Marcello Lippi's son regrets FA rules preventing role with Italy team

The son of Marcello Lippi has expressed his regret that his job as an agent has prevented his father from accepting a role as technical director for the Italy national team.

Rules recently passed by the Italian FA (FIGC) prevent any of its employees from working in a capacity as an agent, or being related to an agent. Davide Lippi is a FIFA registered agent and it is for that reason that his father Marcello had to turn down an offer by FIGC last week.

"I'm a FIFA agent and I always have and always will do my job seriously," Davide Lippi told Radio CRC.

"I'm extremely sorry because I had perceived a great deal of emotion on the part of my father to take on this technical director position and now I am sad because he had decided to dedicate his services to the FA and Italian football, yet all of that will not now happen.

"At the age of 69, after all he has done for Italian football and after he has carried the Italian flag all over the world, I thought he deserved this role, yet he can't take it because of this absurd clause in the rules.

"When my father won the World Cup [as the team's manager], I was already a FIFA agent and I only had one player in the national team -- Massimo Oddo -- and he didn't play a single minute.

"Since this new rule was approved, I don't think I am the only case, but whenever people talk about Davide Lippi, it suddenly becomes an issue.

"As a son, I am sorry. My father is a great man and he had decided to stay in Italy and work here, but he is not able to. I have a great deal of respect for him and when I read what he said about me, it fills me with even more emotion."

Lippi had been expected to become technical director when Giampiero Ventura replaces Antonio Conte as coach following Euro 2016.

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