The Milan supremo, Gerry Cardinale, has taken a sharp jab at the state of Italian football, declaring that the league is in a moment of deep crisis. I...
The Milan supremo, Gerry Cardinale, has taken a sharp jab at the state of Italian football, declaring that the league is in a moment of deep crisis. In a no holds barred interview with GoalZaza dello Sport, the American owner of the Rossoneri did not mince words as he singled out arch rivals Inter for what he termed a disgraceful no show at the 2025 Champions League Final. According to Cardinale, the Nerazzurri failed to give a good account of themselves on the grandest stage, and that failure, in the scheme of things, is a symptom of a much larger rot eating away at Serie A. He stressed that if the powers that be do not act decisively, Italian clubs will continue to be mere spectators in European competitions. The lion. �s share of the blame, he argued, falls on infrastructural decay and the lack of modern stadiums, a problem that makes it nearly impossible for clubs to generate the kind of revenue that their English and Spanish counterparts enjoy. At the end of the day, Cardinale insisted that without serious investment, the days when Italian teams commanded fear across the continent are gone for good. This is a sobering verdict from a man whose club has spent heavily, yet still finds itself chasing shadows in a league that produces talents like Super Eagles talisman Victor Osimhen, whose predatory instincts in the box remain a nightmare for any defence. Back home in Lagos, at popular viewing centres in Surulere and Yaba, this story will land like a thunderbolt. The fans, who often gather in their hundreds to watch Champions League nights, will nod in agreement while sipping their sachet water and chewing suya. They know that if Osimhen or Boniface were in a more competitive league, they would be earning wages that dwarf the numbers being thrown around in Serie A. There will be heated arguments over cold bottles of malt, with some supporters insisting that Cardinale is merely making excuses for his own team. �s inconsistency. Yet, the general feeling will be that the Italian league, once the pride of world football, has become a shadow of its former self, and no amount of flowery talk can change that stubborn reality.
