Former Sampdoria player ‘ashamed’, doesn’t want to ‘end up like’ Leeds United amid Andrea Radrizzani criticism
Andrea Radrizzani’s tenure in charge at Sampdoria has been criticised as the club looks “so weak it annoys quite a bit” amid an unflattering comparison to how he left Leeds United, by Loris Boni.
The former Samp and Roma player said on Facebook, as per SampNews24 on 2 November, “I don’t want to end up like Leeds” as he claimed fans “feel quite ashamed” of the situation at the struggling Serie B side.
Sampdoria are third from bottom in the Italian second tier, having been relegated in the summer at the same time as the Whites, with Radrizzani leaving Elland Road under a cloud as he appeared more focused on rescuing his prospective new club from bankruptcy than ensure the Whites future before a belated sale was agreed to the 49ers.
Boni said: “This football that takes away our enthusiasm, which is reflected in the commercial, forgetting that every club has a history to safeguard…
“Why not realize that these results are the mirror of an inexperience that leaves you perplexed. I’m certainly not here to make the usual accusations of a super fan or perhaps to make it clear that something different is needed.
“Everything is there to see but believing oneself to be Martians makes us quite angry because what we see is enough to make us feel quite ashamed. I know the Sampdorian fans well, I know them all right, you saved them from quicksand but we shouldn’t rest on laurels which then lead us to realise that everything is falling apart.
“Spending more money to get the car back on the right lane can be a problem, but in Genoa there are people who can serve the cause and above all bring enthusiasm, determination and character back to those young people because in Serie B this is what is needed and to appear so weak it annoys quite a bit…
“Study the history, give certainties and not faces that convey nothing. Have you invested in Sampdoria? I don’t want to end up like Leeds, I want to keep believing. And you???”
Sad chapter
The way Radrizzani conducted business on the way out of Leeds United tarnished his reputation with plenty of the supporters, as he reportedly attempted to secure a loan against Elland Road for his purchase of Sampdoria.
After his chaotic final season ended with relegation to the Championship the club’s future was shrouded in uncertainty thanks to his previously agreed deal with the 49ers being negated by failing to avoid the drop.
The delay in negotiating a replacement deal led to weeks of waiting before the EFL ratified the new agreement, with the appointment of Daniel Farke as manager and the inevitable transfer business also pushed back as a result.
Radrizzani appeared more occupied by Sampdoria during this crucial period, and the Whites early-season results arguably suffered thanks to the knock-on effects from those key weeks early in the offseason.
Ahead of the trip to runaway leaders Leicester at the King Power on Friday night (3 November) the 14-point gap between the two sides may have been much narrower if Farke and the hierarchy weren’t still juggling various questions through the first month of the season.
It doesn’t look like Radrizzani is showering himself in glory back in Italy, and considering how his reign at Elland Road was once highly popular during the Marcelo Bielsa era it has to be considered an unfortunate fall.
In other Leeds United news, a Whites ace has been knocked out of action and may need surgery that will make him unavailable for even longer.