I always question myself, but I always say, 'Come on, we can do something good.'
— Claudio Ranieri
Every team believes they are better after the transfer window.
I respect everybody.
My love for football and the players are always very strong.
I don't like pasta.
It is important to always look forward.
My emotions are strong when I start the season.
When you work hard, when you believe in something, in the end, you will achieve something.
I always tell my players to find the fire within themselves.
I think the strength of the man is to have the right balance. Not to be so high when you win; not to be so down when you lose.
In my opinion, if you only show quality but no fighting spirit, you are half a player.
I'm not friends with my players, but I am very close to my players. When I speak to them, I want to speak to the man, always the man.
If you are a gladiator, a fighter in this sport, in life you can be the same.
In my view, fitness training isn't that important in England, as they all train with such intensity anyway and have a competitive edge when just sprinting. The matches are all hard-fought, too.
I never hitched my wagon to anyone, so what I achieved over the years was done with only my results on the field.
I'll admit I was curious about coaching a national team, but my experience with Greece was sufficient.
I think I am a nice man, but also, I am demanding.
I am not like Mourinho. I don't have to win to be sure of myself.
The pressure is on the big teams.
I think everyone now rotates. The Tinkerman was one; now there are a lot of tinkermen!
It was fantastic to win the title with Leicester.
Sometimes the manager says one thing and does another thing!
I try to forget the past.
All my players must be ready because, sooner or later, I will need them.
For me, it is important to stay close to my players.
What matters is getting the best out of the squad you have.
I like English spirit.
When I played, I was an English-style centre-half. Always with my heart, always with my fighting spirit.
Under pressure, I don't go down, I go up.
If you aren't a loser, you fight; you continue to fight, believe.
I have a lot of admiration for those who build tactical systems, but I always thought the most important thing a good coach must do is build the team around the characteristics of his players.
I started coaching in the Interregionale league in Catanzaro. There were pitches with no grass; at times, we had no water, no training equipment. I had to do it all myself.
I believe only in the mathematics.
The day my players relax, I get crazy. They know that.
It's one thing trying it in training and another entirely on the pitch.
If you play well, win, don't change too much. But when you don't play well, lose, you have to give the opportunity to the other players.
It's important to go out on the pitch and make a fantastic performance.
The battle is long, but that's football, sport.
It's not possible to win all matches.
It is important to understand the philosophy of the city and country.
I remember when I was first time in Serie A, we were down the bottom, no one was speaking about Cagliari. And we were safe, one day before the final match. With Parma, we went down, but we were positive right to the end. There are the little details, but you have to continue.
All the time, I said to my players, 'I don't care about the name on the badge or the name of the opponents.'
It's important you give confidence.
I always want fighting spirit first.
I want to be strong because you believe in me. You have to trust me. I give my knowledge to you. That is my philosophy.
If you are a loser in this sport, you are a loser also in life.
My idea is that players need to recover first, train later.
What football means to an Italian coach is tactics, trying to control the game by following the ideas and systems of the manager.
Thinking of the dismissal by Leicester, the first thing that comes to mind is a sense of surprise even more than of bitterness.
My idea about football is to play well, but even if you can't always play well, one thing I want is your character, your spirit. That is all I can ask of you.
