Recently retired Cagliari coach Claudio Ranieri shared his reflections and anecdotes at a Festival organized by Lega Serie A. The former Chelsea coach spoke candidly about his career, his experiences, and the joy he found in coaching:
Ranieri opened with a lighthearted remark about his career, saying, “If I had a good agent or a relative to help me out, I might have achieved more. I always adapted to different realities. A coach who doesn’t have the luxury of choice has to work with what they have and make the best of it. Above all, I had a lot of fun. For instance, I didn’t know Spanish, English, or French; I had to learn them.”
Discussing his historic Premier League win with Leicester City, Ranieri recounted, “I arrived at Leicester when they had just escaped relegation. I studied the entire squad, watched five or six matches. I was eager to return to England and made several changes, like shifting from a 3-5-2 to a 4-4-2 formation. Over time, I managed to integrate players who hit form, including Kanté.” He shared a memorable anecdote: “Before Easter, Bocelli called me and said we were doing something extraordinary and he wanted to come and sing for us.” Reflecting on his most memorable match, he said, “The 3-1 win against Manchester City with Leicester. But the ones that kept me up at night were those with Cagliari this year.”
Ranieri spoke about his recent season with Cagliari, highlighting the challenges and pivotal moments: “I had magnificent players who always gave their all in training but didn’t perform as well in matches. Perhaps they thought just having me on the bench would save them. After a loss to Lazio, I told my staff I was going to leave. I spoke to the players and told them they needed a shock. A few players stood up and asked me to stay, and the rest followed. It wasn’t a planned move; I can’t fake things.”
