Once a known personality and now an almost gone by soccer professional, the Italian Roberto Mancini, is again in the news for signing a three-year deal with Turkish club Galatasaray. However, the amount he agreed upon is much less than what he used to be getting at the City, yet he is happy to have another chance to prove his worth to football fraternity. The 48-year-old former City coach will face Juventus this Wednesday which will be his first meet with his native club though mentoring another team. Being a Juventus native, he would enjoy home support but since he is standing right on opposite of them, there could be a big dilemma for many of his fans whether to support him or their own team. Mancini, who will be playing in Turin’s new stadium for the first time, has no problem in accepting that he has been there up to the age of 14 so he has a section in his heart which prays they perform well, though, he is also confident to show his best playing for his new team. Galatasaray’s former coach, the legendary Fatih Terim, did not accept a two year contract; hence Mancini could enter into his shoe which is proving to be a great opportunity for him. Moneywise, he has agreed to accept around 3.5 million euros for the upcoming season and then 4.5 million euros for next two seasons.
Recalling his childhood, he said, “I’m born Juventino and I was Juventino up to the age of 13 or 14. This is the beautiful thing about my job — one day you are out of work, the next you are here in the Champions League facing Juventus. Things can happen so quickly.” Though, he agreed he got a minimum time to train his new side for the upcoming Championship league clash with Bianconeri, which is around 24 hours from now, but he is relying on his knowledge about Serie A club. He added, “Of course it’s a handicap to take over a team just a day before a game, I don’t have a magic wand. We’re going to need luck, but it could be an advantage that I know Juventus pretty well.
“If I wanted an easy life, I would have stayed at home and watched it on the sofa. This is my job and this is what makes it beautiful. Terim is rightly loved by the fans — he’s one of the biggest Turkish coaches and one of the biggest in Europe, but these things happen in football. I was called by Galatasaray and I’m delighted to be able to carry on Terim’s good work.”