Salutes you, sir! Paolo Di Canio tries to stamp out 'fascism' row by declaring it CLOSED
First media conference for new Sunderland boss - and he attempts to crush references to his self-proclaimed fascism
Twitter
Paolo Di Canio used a packed media conference at Sunderland this
morning to attempt to crush the controversy surrounding his previously
proclaimed political views - by dodging the issue.
It has been reported that there were four-times the number of media bodies crammed into the conference than had attended Martin O'Neill's similar first bow as Black Cats boss.
Di Canio was very happy to reveal that he was excited about the challenge of trying to keep Sunderland up, but when asked if he remained "a fascist", he took a firm line.
Di Canio, who had described the row as 'ridiculous' in a statement released yesterday, declared: "I don't have to answer any more this question, there was a very good statement from the club, (with) very, very clear words that came out from me.
"I don't want to talk any more about politics for one reason because I'm not in the House of Parliament, I'm not a political person, I will talk about only football."
The Durham Miners' Association has asked the club to return a symbolic banner which is kept at the Stadium of Light if Di Canio remains in his post, describing Di Canio's appointment as a "betrayal and a disgrace".
Asked today if he had a message for the DMA, Di Canio said: "I have said many, many words in the past and people have picked the words they wanted, I can't keep going on about my life and my family.
"The people who are talking in this way, they don't understand Paolo Di Canio."
There were repeated calls for Di Canio to clarify his views on fascism at the end of the press conference but he wasn't having it.
"The fans have to think my life speaks for me," he said.
"Call Trevor Sinclair, call Chris Powell, call [his agent] Phil Spencer, he's Jewish. Call them - who is Paolo Di Canio?"
The controversial Italian's appointment has caused a political storm because of his past assertion that he is a fascist. Di Canio and Sunderland had previously attempted to play down their new manager's political leanings.
But the appointment - which has already seen the resignation of former Foreign Secretary David Miliband from his role at the club, prompted our north-east football correspondent Simon Bird to ask whether socialist Sunderland could learn to live with a man of Di Canio's stamp.
In this morning's media conference Di Canio said it took him "a second" to agree to take the job when Sunderland owner Ellis Short called him.
"Late in the afternoon after the Manchester (United) game, I received a phone call and I was surprised because many times it was happened that a manager was sacked and my name, Di Canio, was 5-1 odds," he said.
"When I received the phone call from Mr Short, I thought it was a joke and I was ready to say a bad word - I thought it was a friend and I would have lost my job!
"But it was a big surprise and I had the fire in my stomach. I said yes after a second and I said I come by swim, no problem."
Di Canio does not see his lack of top-flight managerial experience as a problem. He said: "It is obvious that in the past people have been sceptical because it was my first job as Swindon, League Two, League One, the mad Italian, he will fight his players, but at the end I won the league.
"I am young, people say the same, I have no experience in the Premiership but I am not worried."
When asked how much he would bet on a Sunderland survival, he said: "You call me the mad Italian so I bet what I have got.
“People are sceptical, it's not Paolo Di Canio who makes the statistics, I hear people talking about my statistics but it doesn't mean anything.
“I see managers with more experience than Paolo Di Canio, they are relegated. Why not change this habit one day?" ------------------- Mirror Football
It has been reported that there were four-times the number of media bodies crammed into the conference than had attended Martin O'Neill's similar first bow as Black Cats boss.
Di Canio was very happy to reveal that he was excited about the challenge of trying to keep Sunderland up, but when asked if he remained "a fascist", he took a firm line.
Di Canio, who had described the row as 'ridiculous' in a statement released yesterday, declared: "I don't have to answer any more this question, there was a very good statement from the club, (with) very, very clear words that came out from me.
"I don't want to talk any more about politics for one reason because I'm not in the House of Parliament, I'm not a political person, I will talk about only football."
The Durham Miners' Association has asked the club to return a symbolic banner which is kept at the Stadium of Light if Di Canio remains in his post, describing Di Canio's appointment as a "betrayal and a disgrace".
Asked today if he had a message for the DMA, Di Canio said: "I have said many, many words in the past and people have picked the words they wanted, I can't keep going on about my life and my family.
"The people who are talking in this way, they don't understand Paolo Di Canio."
There were repeated calls for Di Canio to clarify his views on fascism at the end of the press conference but he wasn't having it.
"The fans have to think my life speaks for me," he said.
"Call Trevor Sinclair, call Chris Powell, call [his agent] Phil Spencer, he's Jewish. Call them - who is Paolo Di Canio?"
'You call me the mad Italian...'
On a lighter note, Di Canio expressed his supreme confidence that he would save Sunderland from the drop, saying he would bet everything he has on the Black Cats staying up.The controversial Italian's appointment has caused a political storm because of his past assertion that he is a fascist. Di Canio and Sunderland had previously attempted to play down their new manager's political leanings.
But the appointment - which has already seen the resignation of former Foreign Secretary David Miliband from his role at the club, prompted our north-east football correspondent Simon Bird to ask whether socialist Sunderland could learn to live with a man of Di Canio's stamp.
In this morning's media conference Di Canio said it took him "a second" to agree to take the job when Sunderland owner Ellis Short called him.
"Late in the afternoon after the Manchester (United) game, I received a phone call and I was surprised because many times it was happened that a manager was sacked and my name, Di Canio, was 5-1 odds," he said.
"When I received the phone call from Mr Short, I thought it was a joke and I was ready to say a bad word - I thought it was a friend and I would have lost my job!
"But it was a big surprise and I had the fire in my stomach. I said yes after a second and I said I come by swim, no problem."
Di Canio does not see his lack of top-flight managerial experience as a problem. He said: "It is obvious that in the past people have been sceptical because it was my first job as Swindon, League Two, League One, the mad Italian, he will fight his players, but at the end I won the league.
"I am young, people say the same, I have no experience in the Premiership but I am not worried."
When asked how much he would bet on a Sunderland survival, he said: "You call me the mad Italian so I bet what I have got.
“People are sceptical, it's not Paolo Di Canio who makes the statistics, I hear people talking about my statistics but it doesn't mean anything.
“I see managers with more experience than Paolo Di Canio, they are relegated. Why not change this habit one day?" ------------------- Mirror Football
Greetings! Very helpful advice within this article! It is the little
ReplyDeletechanges that produce the most significant changes.
Many thanks for sharing!
my page ... waist height ratio