It’s not all rosy for Napoli following the streak-busting loss to Lazio. Mario Giuffredi, the agent of Mario Rui, bitterly criticized Luciano Spalletti. Mathias Olivera routinely plays over the Portuguese fullback in games where the Azzurri want a more defensive-minded posture.
The representative vented to Televomero (via Corriere dello Sport).
“He’s surely down in the dumps right now. He would have liked to be available in the Lazio and Atalanta games, which are two seminal head-to-head clashes for the Scudetto race. The red card versus Empoli is part of who he is. His character has been his strength in several instances, and a weakness in a few others. He was very sorry after the game, but he couldn’t walk back what he did. It wasn’t premeditated. It’s something that just happens during the run of play at times.”
“He has always been a great player even before the arrival of Spalletti. He improved mentally thanks to him, which allows him to play up to his full potential from the technical standpoint too.”
Giuffredi disagrees with the boss’ stance about his left-backs.
“The matter about his physicality is just his idea. He has faced many worthy opponents in Europe too. Fielding Olivera because he’s more muscular is nonsense. I don’t argue with how players are handled, but I distaste preconceived notions. You can pick somebody based on the traits of the adversaries, but I don’t like this idea that Rui can’t feature in the more challenging matches. It’s offensive toward his value.”
The 31-year-old has starred in 22 fixtures so far and is putting together a career year on the offensive end, having already dished 7 assists.
 |
Follow us on Google News for more updates on Serie A and Italian football |