Gattuso speaks openly about his autoimmune disease: It’s under control

Recently appointed Valencia coach Gennaro Gattuso has spoken openly about the autoimmune disease that he has long suffered from.

The Italian spoke about ocular myasthenia gravis, which has not prevented him from developing his career as a professional footballer and now, as a coach.

“I have never hidden anything here either. I have, like so many people, an autoimmune disease called ocular myasthenia,” he told Corriere della Sera.

“I have suffered from it for a long time, but it is absolutely under control and it doesn’t limit my work in any way.

“I have no obstacles, so much so that I have always trained. Even at Napoli, where I coached great players in a great club.”

Gattuso will face his former coach at AC Milan, Carlo Ancelotti, in LaLiga Santander next season and the new Valencia boss could not speak highly enough of him.

“I always support Carlo [Ancelotti]. How can I not? I won 11 trophies with him. He’s a master,” he said. “

“He manages all types of groups. He did it 30 years ago and he does it now, as he showed at Real Madrid. It will be great to meet him on the pitch, in LaLiga.”

Gattuso will have to win over a new dressing room and he underlined some of the challenges.

“I tell them that I like the word ‘we’ and not the word ‘I'”. “The modern footballer is very different to the one of my generation. They are more rational, they live in a different communicative context. Today a coach has to get into the players’ souls, not just their heads,” he said.