Gazidis on Hernandez future and Juve’s unhealthy Serie A domination

Ivan Gazidis

had an interview with

Forbes

newspaper and he emphasized the importance of building new stadiums in Italy during that talk.

and

’s new stadium will be prepared in 2026-27 and it is going to be named ‘The Cathedral’, with the project receiving its approval in 2021.

“

Football in Italy is such an important part of the fabric of the country,”

said Gazidis.

“And I think one of the sad things over the last couple of decades has been the slow and steady decline of Italian football, in comparison with the other European leagues.

“This is a necessary step. If we don’t build stadiums in Italy, we know what the future will be. We know what we’re handing to our children. And the inheritance that they will have is a league that continues to be on a long, slow, steady decline. That’s not a future that is a responsible one to hand to the next generation.

“I don’t believe that is the future of Italian football. I think Italian football is absolutely ready for revitalization.”

It may not be a coincidence that

had their Serie A domination in the last decade after their new stadium was built in 2011. However, Gazidis thinks that the Bianconeri’s victories in the league were not healthy for Serie A.

“

It’s transformational for the two football clubs, Milan and Inter, in their journey to be back at the top of European football,”

he said.

“And it’s transformational, actually, for Italian football because we’ve had a decade which has been dominated by Juventus in their new stadium. That’s not healthy for a league that needs to grow its global appeal.”

After their 1-0 victory over Sampdoria on Sunday, Milan are sitting top of the table, only a point above their rivals Inter who have one game in hand.

Theo Hernandez

, who is one of the most prized assets of the club, has extended his deal with the Serie A side on Friday.

“

Theo’s a great example of somebody we consider to be a world-class talent that we brought in and helped to develop with us. So he has grown with us,”

Gazidis said.

“I would still say we are a work in progress. We are still progressing towards where we want to be. But we’re clearly on the right path.

“And the foundation of that is young players that develop with Milan into world-class talents which then raise the level of the team, which then increases our revenues, which enables us to invest more into the team to be able to retain them.”

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