Gattuso Explains Shock of Going Against Former Teammate, Pirlo

Napoli manager Gennaro Gattuso spoke about what it will be like playing against his former Squadra Azzura and AC Milan colleague, Andrea Pirlo, the current manager of Juventus. The two teams meet tonight in the Italian Super Cup.

The two were an integral part of AC Milan and the Italian national team’s success during the late 1990s and 2000s. The two were often paired up in the teams’ setup, with Pirlo usually playing a regista role, while Gattuso often deployed as a ball winning midfielder.

Gennaro Gattuso spoke about his friendship with Pirlo ahead of the Supercoppa Italiana. The former international spoke fondly of his time playing with the current Juventus boss.

The Napoli manager rembered that both of them met early in their playing career while representing the youth national team. Gattuso also says that even from the earliest days, Pirlo’s quality for dictating play was obvious.

While their friendship, Gattuso assures fans, is never likely to change, he is confident of the Gli Azzuri’s success, in spite of knowing this will not be an easy match. The manager believes that Juventus’ recent slump in form, which included a defeat to Inter, will not be a deciding factor in the way the game is played.

However, the manager for the Partenopei says that his team’s good recent performance makes them confident of being able to provide fans with a dream third Italian Supercup.