Dirtiness. The disorder. “Chaos”, even dares the Gazzetta dello Sport. Choose the term you want to designate the appearance of the Italian locker room after the defeat against North Macedonia (0-1) on Thursday evening, synonymous with non-qualification for the 2022 World Cup in Qatar. Because the European champions left the place in a deplorable state, as shown in this video shot by a maintenance worker according to the Italian press, and which has since been widely on social networks.
The two-minute sequence shows where Marco Verratti and his partners tried to digest this unexpected elimination in Palermo. On the video, we see pell-mell in the locker room of the Sicilian stadium of rubbish, tufts of grass, started food, half-empty bottles, plastic bags or disposable cutlery. The pitiful spectacle continues in the toilets, where we see other bottles, cigarette butts, and some leftover food. The whole thing gives the impression of a certain I-don’t care on the part of the occupants of the place.
The video was widely circulated on social networks and outraged several Internet supporters of the Squadra Azzura, already well reassembled after the surprise defeat of their proteges. “Shame, an absolute lack of respect”, is indignant one of them. Another makes a comparison with the behavior of the Italian selection and that of Japan at the 2018 World Cup, which had cleaned every corner of its locker room after its elimination in the round of 16 by Belgium (2-3).
“The room seems to have been crossed by a hurricane”
The transalpine press also reported the case. “The room entrusted to the players seems to have been crossed by a hurricane. Trajkovski’s goal and defeat are not an alibi, annoys Corriere della Serra. We would have done without this bad image, defeat was enough. “What happened is an absolute lack of respect for the work of others, gets carried away Il Giornale. The federation will have to explain itself. »
The Italian team will play the match of the teams beaten in these qualifying play-offs on Tuesday with a trip to Turkey, dominated (3-1) by Portugal. The Portuguese will face North Macedonia for their part with one of the last tickets in this Europe zone at stake.