The controversial Italian oversteps the mark in disciplining players.
Sunderland manager Paolo Di Canio has been warned by the Professional Footballers Association (PFA) over the disciplinary actions he hands out to his players, after several of the Black Cats squad complained.
A series of club fines led to players filing a complaint against the manager, particularly for the punishments he handed out to the duo caught having a night out before the final match of the season with Tottenham.
Di Canio condemned Phil Bardsley and Matthew Kilgallon after they were pictured in a casino midweek and later told the BBC the players would not be playing under him next season.
The Italian also threatened to reduce players’ holiday this summer if they failed to meet his expectations against Spurs and fined a further seven members of his squad for poor behaviour.
Yet the 44-year-old’s heavy handed approach in terms of discipline has not gone down well with all the employees at Sunderland and PFA chief Gordon Taylor agrees with their sentiments.
“He cannot be a law unto himself,” Taylor was quoted on Sky Sports.
“We’re aware of player unrest at some comments made publicly, and other situations. A number of players are involved.
“We’re aware of Paolo Di Canio’s comments – it’s something we had to deal with [when the Italian was manager] at Swindon as well.”
After only seven matches in charge of the Black Cats it is clear that Di Canio isn’t a popular choice with all of the players, despite the former West Ham striker guiding the club away from relegation with a match to spare.
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