Cassano-Samp love affair coming to an end?

There were rumors this week that Sampdoria striker Antonio Cassano and manager Gigi Delneri had been involved in a training ground bust-up with shouting and Cassano had even threatened to never play again all season. Of course these were all unconfirmed rumors so we don’t really know what went on. However, today when Sampdoria’s list of players called up to their away match vs. Udinese was announced, Antonio Cassano’s name wasn’t on the list, and he is neither suspended or injured. This fueled speculation that there was in fact a training ground spat and the Italian media had a field day today making up transfer rumors linking Cassano to a January move to Manchester City or a possible break-up in June. While a January move to Manchester City is highly unlikely, a June break-up could be on the cards. More after the jump.

These were Delneri’s words at the press conference today:

“It is only a technical choice. I haven’t gone mad, the club is on my side. I reject all rumors that say we’ve had an argument. A manager doesn’t have to guarantee a starting spot to any player. We talked and I gave him my ideas, but there wasn’t any angry confrontation, we had a calm talk like men. I’m sorry for the rumors that came out that we had an argument, because this gives our club a bad image and disrupts the environment. In Udine I want strikers that know how to press. It is a normal decision a manager makes and it’s normal for the player to accept it, like it was. My decision was discussed with the club and I have their backing.”

Now Samp, who haven’t won since November 22nd, have to travel to Udinese (also struggling) without their best player. Nicola Pozzi will start alongside Giampaolo Pazzini. Cassano had started the season in brilliant form, but along with Sampdoria’s decline his performances started to decline. Add to that his knowledge that he had almost no shot of going to South Africa this summer and you can see why his latest performances have lacked motivation. With this being Cassano’s 3rd season at Sampdoria, he will have to reflect on his position come June. He is currently at a club where he feels comfortable and is treated like a king, but also a club that looks unwilling to invest large amounts of cash to reinforce the squad and aim higher in the Serie A table. While Cassano says he’d rather be happy than win trophies, we don’t know if that’s entirely true. This July Cassano will turn 28 years old, and with this being the best part of his career, he will probably reflect and make a decision whether he wants to leave or not.

This exclusion could also be a good thing for Samp. A similar thing happened in the 1997-98 season with Roberto Baggio. Baggio, then at Bologna, had a conflict with manager Renzo Ulivieri and was left out of one of Bologna’s fixtures. Bologna lost, and after that Baggio was made the star again and went on to score 22 goals that season, forcing Cesare Maldini to bring him to the World Cup in France. Maybe this will provide a similar spark for Cassano?

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Category: Azzurri, Players, Rumors & News, Sampdoria, Serie A