ROME // Returning Italy coach Marcello Lippi insists he will not pressure Francesco Totti or Alessandro Nesta to reverse their decisions to retire from the international team.
Lippi, who led the Azzurri to World Cup glory in Germany in 2006 before stepping down, returned to the role last week after Roberto Donadoni lost his job following Italy's poor showing at Euro 2008.
The Roma captain Totti and AC Milan defender Nesta quit international football last year and many believe Italy would be better equipped if the pair returned for the 2010 World Cup qualifying campaign.
"I am totally convinced that you must respect peoples' decisions, in this case two great champions who have given everything for the national side," Lippi said in first press conference since his reappointment.
"It is not right (to pressure them), they've made a decision we must respect."
However, Lippi did the leave the door open for the pair if they changed their minds independently.
Totti was injured and in any case would have missed Italy's lacklustre run to last month's Euro 2008 quarter-finals where they lost on penalties to eventual winners Spain.
But Nesta would almost certainly have been in the team after captain Fabio Cannavaro was ruled out of the tournament with injury just before it started.
Lippi refused to answer questions about the Juventus striker Alessandro Del Piero, who is evaluating his international future after being a bit part player at the European Championships in Austria and Switzerland.
The Defender Christian Panucci, 35, fell out with Lippi and did not play in their victorious World Cup campaign in 2006. He was an ever-present under Donadoni at Euro 2008 and Lippi said no player was ruled out.
"All players from 18-40 years-old enter my plans," he said. I am here to continue a winning streak. I have the will to rediscover the great feeling from the World Cup. I restart with the squad I left, integrating other players, hopefully youngsters."
Lippi's first match back will be a friendly against Austria in Nice on Aug 20 before their World Cup qualifying campaign begins in Cyprus on Sept 6.
*Reuters
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€39 million: Liverpool agreed a fee, including add-ons, in the region of €39m (nearly Dh176m) to sign Salah from Roma last year. The exchange rate at the time meant that cost the Reds £34.3m - a bargain given his performances since.
13: The 25-year-old player was not a complete stranger to the Premier League when he arrived at Liverpool this summer. However, during his previous stint at Chelsea, he made just 13 Premier League appearances, seven of which were off the bench, and scored only twice.
57: It was in the 57th minute of his Liverpool bow when Salah opened his account for the Reds in the 3-3 draw with Watford back in August. The Egyptian prodded the ball over the line from close range after latching onto Roberto Firmino's attempted lob.
7: Salah's best scoring streak of the season occurred between an FA Cup tie against West Brom on January 27 and a Premier League win over Newcastle on March 3. He scored for seven games running in all competitions and struck twice against Tottenham.
3: This season Salah became the first player in Premier League history to win the player of the month award three times during a term. He was voted as the division's best player in November, February and March.
40: Salah joined Roger Hunt and Ian Rush as the only players in Liverpool's history to have scored 40 times in a single season when he headed home against Bournemouth at Anfield earlier this month.
30: The goal against Bournemouth ensured the Egyptian achieved another milestone in becoming the first African player to score 30 times across one Premier League campaign.
8: As well as his fine form in England, Salah has also scored eight times in the tournament phase of this season's Champions League. Only Real Madrid's Cristiano Ronaldo, with 15 to his credit, has found the net more often in the group stages and knockout rounds of Europe's premier club competition.
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In numbers: PKK’s money network in Europe
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Revolutionary tax: Investigators say about $2 million a year raised from ‘tax collection’ around Marseille
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TV channel: Kurdish Roj TV accounts frozen and went bankrupt after Denmark fined it more than $1 million over PKK links in 2013
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Going grey? A stylist's advice
If you’re going to go grey, a great style, well-cared for hair (in a sleek, classy style, like a bob), and a young spirit and attitude go a long way, says Maria Dowling, founder of the Maria Dowling Salon in Dubai.
It’s easier to go grey from a lighter colour, so you may want to do that first. And this is the time to try a shorter style, she advises. Then a stylist can introduce highlights, start lightening up the roots, and let it fade out. Once it’s entirely grey, a purple shampoo will prevent yellowing.
“Get professional help – there’s no other way to go around it,” she says. “And don’t just let it grow out because that looks really bad. Put effort into it: properly condition, straighten, get regular trims, make sure it’s glossy.”
