Juric slams Mancini's Italy over unused Kouadio: 'A waste of time'

📰 Monza coach Ivan Jurić hit out at Roberto Mancini's Italy for calling up a player they never used. 📌 Key points 🗣️ Jurić called Eddy Kouadio's Italy call-up "a waste of time". 📋 Kouadio was named in Mancini's 34-man squad for the first time. 🪑 He did not make a matchday squad in any of the four Nations League games. ⏳ Jurić says Monza lost two and a half weeks of training with him. 🌍 Kouadio holds dual nationality and is eligible for Ivory Coast. 📝 What happened 🗣️ Speaking ahead of Monza's trip to Lazio on 9 October, Jurić said Kouadio had "lost time" and that, if he was not going to play, he would have preferred him to stay with Monza. Football Italia quotes him as saying: "For me, it was a waste of time." 📋 The 20-year-old defender earned a surprise place in Mancini's 34-man squad after eight Serie A appearances. Italy played Belgium, Turkey, France and Turkey again in the Nations League during the break. 🪑 Kouadio was left out of the matchday squad all four times, despite having never played for the Under-21s before his senior call-up. 🤝 Jurić was full of praise for Lazio coach Gennaro Gattuso, saying he "is not afraid of anything" and that he respects him as a coach and as a man. 📊 By the numbers • Kouadio's age: 20 • Serie A appearances this season: 8 • Italy squad size: 34 • Training lost by Monza: about two and a half weeks (per Jurić) 🔭 Why it matters The club-versus-country row over call-ups has now reached Italy. It also raises the question of whether Italy called Kouadio early to stop Ivory Coast claiming him. Monza visit Lazio at the Stadio Olimpico this weekend.