Gianluigi Donnarumma responds to criticism and makes a promise to'Italy

Gianluigi Donnarumma has returned to talk after Italy failed to qualify for the World Cup in an interview granted to Sky Sport. The national team’s number one, who has returned to Manchester City, let loose, recalling the difficult moments he experienced after Bosnia-Italy.

The former AC Milan goalkeeper dwelt above all on the relationship built with Gennaro Gattuso, Gianluigi Buffon and all the staff, emphasizing the human as well as professional bond: “I had a wonderful relationship with Gigi, coach and president. I feel sorry especially for that, for them. It’s normal that a little bit you feel responsible for everything that’s happening now.”

A reflection that also ties in with the balance of the last few years, between disappointments and successes such as the 2021 European Championship, and that looks ahead toward the necessary restart of the national team: “We have to move forward because in these years in addition to the disappointments we have done important things. Now we have to react, it’s hard, but we have to move forward with strength and with the guilt that Italy will come back strong and will become great again.”

Iran meanwhile is moving toward renouncing the 2026 World Cup. The Middle Eastern country’s sports minister, Ahmad Donyamali, reiterated to Turkey’s Anadolu Agency Tehran’s firm demand that the World Cup group matches be played in Mexico and not in Los Angeles and Seattle, as planned. This is an organizational challenge for FIFA, which so far has not opened up to this possibility.

“The request to move our matches to Mexico is still valid, but we have not yet received a response,” explained Ahmad Donyamali, the country’s minister at war with the United States. “We will still keep the team ready for the World Cup, although the final decision will be up to our government. Trump’s statements are very contradictory and inconsistent: according to Fifa regulations, security must be provided by the country concerned. The World Cup is coming up soon, and these guarantees are far from a given. Under these circumstances, the likelihood of Iran participating in World Cup matches in the United States is very low.”