PAOLO Di Canio has made it clear he DID NOT apologise to John OâShea in the wake of criticising his captain for conceding a penalty and getting sent off at Crystal Palace.
The head coach publicly slated OâShea a fortnight ago after the defenderâs mistake at Selhurst Park sent Sunderland spiralling to a 3-1 defeat.
Those outspoken comments drew criticisms of their own, with many suggesting it was ill-advised for Di Canio to dress down his skipper in public.
And it was reported earlier this week that the Italian had rang OâShea the day after the game to apologise for his comments.
But Di Canio has insisted there was no apology and he stands by his original statements â even though he is quick to point out that he also stands fully behind his skipper.
âIt is not true that I rang John OâShea the next day to apologise,â he told the Echo.
âThatâs not because I feel that it is wrong to apologise if you do something wrong â if you do something wrong, you should apologise.
âBut there was nothing for me to apologise for.
âThe way that phone call was interpreted by the media shows that people do not understand my relationship with my players.â
Di Canio then went on to explain exactly what he did say to the former Manchester United man.
âWhen there is a problem in a game, I have my say. I am very, very clear. And then 10 minutes later, it is finished. We move on,â he said.
âThe day after the game, I did ring John OâShea, but not to apologise. I rang to encourage him.
âThe conversation was meant to be private but it has come out, so I can tell people about it â it was a very natural conversation.
âI said to him: âHow do you feel John?â He said: âI have had better daysâ.
âAnd I said to him: âDonât be downâ. And I said in a fun way: âForget the rubbish mistake you made yesterday!
ââNow you must think about the next two games,â I said to him. âThe internationals â because your country is very important to you and you have to put the league game behind you and focus on these international gamesâ.
âI said that he must be positive on international duty and then come back to the club more positive than ever.
âThis is my relationship with my players.
âJohn OâShea is my captain, he is my leader and I can talk about his mistakes â it does not mean that I donât rate him as one of the top, top players at the club and he knows that.â
The head coach publicly slated OâShea a fortnight ago after the defenderâs mistake at Selhurst Park sent Sunderland spiralling to a 3-1 defeat.
Those outspoken comments drew criticisms of their own, with many suggesting it was ill-advised for Di Canio to dress down his skipper in public.
And it was reported earlier this week that the Italian had rang OâShea the day after the game to apologise for his comments.
But Di Canio has insisted there was no apology and he stands by his original statements â even though he is quick to point out that he also stands fully behind his skipper.
âIt is not true that I rang John OâShea the next day to apologise,â he told the Echo.
âThatâs not because I feel that it is wrong to apologise if you do something wrong â if you do something wrong, you should apologise.
âBut there was nothing for me to apologise for.
âThe way that phone call was interpreted by the media shows that people do not understand my relationship with my players.â
Di Canio then went on to explain exactly what he did say to the former Manchester United man.
âWhen there is a problem in a game, I have my say. I am very, very clear. And then 10 minutes later, it is finished. We move on,â he said.
âThe day after the game, I did ring John OâShea, but not to apologise. I rang to encourage him.
âThe conversation was meant to be private but it has come out, so I can tell people about it â it was a very natural conversation.
âI said to him: âHow do you feel John?â He said: âI have had better daysâ.
âAnd I said to him: âDonât be downâ. And I said in a fun way: âForget the rubbish mistake you made yesterday!
ââNow you must think about the next two games,â I said to him. âThe internationals â because your country is very important to you and you have to put the league game behind you and focus on these international gamesâ.
âI said that he must be positive on international duty and then come back to the club more positive than ever.
âThis is my relationship with my players.
âJohn OâShea is my captain, he is my leader and I can talk about his mistakes â it does not mean that I donât rate him as one of the top, top players at the club and he knows that.â