Paolo Di Canio sparks concern from TV viewers after repeatedly banging head on table during debate

Paolo Di Canio needed medical assistance on Wednesday night after the former Juventus and West Ham forward smashed his head against a table with significant force during a live TV debate.

The 57-year-old, who is a regular pundit for Sky Sports in Italy, was on hand to comment on yesterday's Champions League quarter-final matches alongside former England manager Fabio Capello.

It was a largely entertaining night of action as Bayern Munich secured their spot in the semi-final stage with a 4-3 win over Real Madrid, so naturally, there was plenty to talk about in the Sky studio.

However, the debate soon turned to how teams in Serie A can reach the level of those in the Premier League following a particularly disappointing campaign for Italian sides.

Atalanta were the only Italian team to reach the knockout stage of the competition this year, and they were beaten heavily by Bayern last month.

The topic was clearly a sensitive one for a frustrated Di Canio and, after a back-and-forth with presenter Federica Masolin, he banged his head on the table three times, leaving him with an injury.

In fact, according to Italian journalist Tancredi Palmeri, Capello handed Di Canio a tissue to stop the bleeding from his head.

As per Football Italia, host Masolin asked Di Canio when Italian football would reach the Premier League’s level and Di Canio sarcastically replied: “I’ve been good so far, and now you want to provoke me. You want to make me sad!”

A concerned Capello, meanwhile, replied: “What did you do?” to which Di Canio responded: “You provoked me, I’m going to smash my head.”

Paulo Di Canio has already gone viral this month for comments about Rafael Leao

Amid Leao's poor form for AC Milan, Di Canio suggested the striker's off-the-field antics are partly to blame.

“He relaxed; he’s been cuddled, and he hasn’t had the determination or desire to keep improving," began Di Canio.

"The priority has almost become something else. Over the years, I don’t remember seeing so many fashion show videos or eight-hour recording sessions with record labels. You always say we should look at the players’ private lives, but if someone spends four or five hours doing other things, their physical and mental energy gets drained."

"It’s not like playing PlayStation for half an hour," added the Italian. "If you’re spending six or seven hours with a record label and going to fashion shows, how are you supposed to regenerate the mental energy to play at this level?”