Former England manager Fabio Capello has leapt to the defence of under-fire Arrigo Sacchi amid accusations of racism.
Earlier this week, Sacchi claimed that "there are too many black players" in Italy's youth system, prompting a backlash of criticism from the football world, with FIFA president Sepp Blatter among the critics.
The 68-year-old has since sought to clarify his comments and insisted that he is not racist, sentiments that his fellow Italian has echoed.
"What he said is not racism," Capello, also 68, told Onda Cero. "We just need to have more Italian players in our youth academies, [players] with an Italian identity.
"We also have black players who are Italian but he was referring to the youth teams that have eight or nine foreign players in them."
Capello has since been embroiled in a homophobia debate after saying: "I don't agree that they are violent. Football is not for mariquitas" in reference to Atletico Madrid's style of play.
The Spanish word 'mariquitas' is related to 'marica', a homophobic slur which is considered the equivalent of 'fairies' in English.
Shane Callaghan
