Many Italian coaches have tried their luck in the Premier League in recent years. Simonetta Italiano was the English teacher of many of them, and decided to tell some anecdotes to the Gazzetta Dello Sport.  From Capello to Carlo Ancelotti and his salamis, then Sarri and the criticized Mazzarri. 

On Capello: "He was the first important coach I worked with. His father was a teacher and it shows: he gives great importance to grammatical rules. He wanted to understand everything well."

On Ancelotti: "He too was good. He is a good man, of great generosity. Often he presented himself in class bringing salami. The best of the players? Maybe Zappacosta."

On Sarri: "He really is incredible. He immediately absorbs idiomatic words and phrases. Curious and open."

On Mazzarri: "It is not true that he was limited in English as newspapers and websites wrote. They targeted him from the beginning and for him, a mental block was created in expressing himself in English in public.

"In class, he was able to hold up conversations. The first impact with a language is fundamental: if difficulties are created, it is difficult to overcome them," he concluded.