Quite a few people were incited to stand up and question Maniero.
In response, Maniero held a press conference before the training camp started, after all the European Youth Championship players except for Lu Yang had arrived.
At the meeting, Maniero faced the reporters and asked, "So, is the phenomenon of Italy National Team players being looked down upon only starting after the announcement of this European Youth Championship roster?"
"If that's the case, I'm willing to apologize to the public for the decisions I've made, but... the facts seem otherwise!"
Below the stage, all the reporters were left speechless.
Because Maniero hit them where it hurt.
"Why is Italy being looked down upon? Don't we know the reason ourselves? Are we really going to blame Lu Yang? Or blame the young stars who are just in their teens and twenties?" Maniero raged. "I don't mean to criticize any player in the Italy National Team."
