Mazzarri: Making excuses is to protect players and not care about personal image. Guardiola once learned from me

In Italian football, Mazzarri is a special presence. He has coaching experience in many teams such as Naples and Inter Milan. In an exclusive interview with Gazzetta dello Sport, he discussed many topics about his coaching career.

About coaching De Laurentiis in Naples

I think I am the only coach who played for De Laurentiis in Naples for four years. Sarri only stayed for three years and even the guys who won Serie A stayed shorter than me.

On being criticized and always looking for excuses

I always protect my players, maybe I will use some excuses to prevent them from being attacked, but now I see some coaches openly criticizing their players. I don't care about personal appearance, I always want to protect my team and my watch gesture has become iconic. I wanted to buy more time or hope the referee blew the whistle because we won. We played well and the opponents had to do everything to beat us. This gesture is now permanently preserved in the Maradona Stadium. It may have become a meme, and I am happy in that sense.

On whether he is a defensive coach

Under my coaching, all the players scored many goals. Bianchi went to Manchester City after I coached Reggina. All the forwards have performed well under me and there must be a reason for that. Facts matter in life, and even though some people may not like me, the data speaks for itself. For example, Naples' "Big Three". First, you must be lucky enough to have players that fit your system. Lavezzi's advantage lies in breakthroughs, so I let him move on the left. If you put him in the middle, he won't be as effective. When I met him, I understood that immediately and worked to play to his strengths. Lavezzi is explosive, but struggles to maintain his energy in the final stages. This is when Hamsik comes into play. He is smart, comprehensive and has strong running ability, and can form a 3-5-2 formation. I was lucky enough to coach Lavezzi, Cavani and Hamsik when they were not superstars. They were still young and the "Big Three" only really took shape in the second year.

When I returned to Napoli, I tried to make Kvara Tschelia play like Lavezzi. But our midfielders didn’t have the characteristics for that kind of movement, so we chose a different tactic.

About coaching Cavani

People told me that Cavani has amazing power, but he is too impatient when shooting and often misses opportunities. After training, I would stay and teach him how to shoot. Look at Maradona, when he shoots, he slows down and looks at the ball because he already knows where the goal is. Ever since Cavani started doing this, he has become a crazy goalscorer, scoring goals from all angles. It was me who wanted him to join Napoli because I noticed against Palermo at Sampdoria that he could press everyone on his own. His movement is excellent and he moves frequently. He didn't score many goals and didn't convince everyone. Cavani came to Napoli because I wanted him and they were originally looking at another guy who I thought could only be a fourth striker in Serie A at best.

About the strongest player I have ever coached

I wrote a chapter in the book about Hamsik because he is the most comprehensive. But I also think of Cavani, Lavezzi, Lucarelli and Pazzini. A lot of players like me very much and I thank them.

On whether Guardiola has learned from himself

In my time, Naples played simple and beautiful football, and now many people such as Gasperini are imitating it. Those teams that played four backs were difficult to deal with us. Therefore, Guardiola, who has studied a lot, invited us to participate in the Gamper Cup to see our methods up close. We had a drink in his office after the game and had a long chat because he was so curious.