Maurizio Sarri slams the Qatar World Cup, claims it is an 'insult to football'

Lazio manager Maurizio Sarri has slammed the Qatar World Cup, calling the break an 'insult to football'.

The former Chelsea boss revealed his thoughts about the tournament ahead of this weekend's game with Juventus.

Sarri, 63, has never been one for holding his tongue and has regularly been a good source for funny moments, comments or outbursts.

Of course, we can all recall the incident from his time at Chelsea between himself and Kepa Arrizabalaga for example, but this time he's spoken out on the highly criticised World Cup in the Middle East.

Sarri spoke to the media prior to this weekend's clash away at Juventus, where he openly raised questions about Qatar's influence in the sport.

As reported by Italian outlet TuttoMercato, Sarri revealed his thoughts when asked about the upcoming break at club level.

“I see it as an insult to football. If someone explains to me what the Qatari movement can give to football, excluding the money to Manchester City and PSG, I can change my mind.

"We have respected the calendar and now the break is convenient, given the injuries ”.

Sarri is certainly not the first to speak out of the Qatar WC, as the decision to award Qatar the famous competition has caused much controversy from the footballing world, as well as the wider world in general.

Many countries have claimed they will continue to campaign on human rights issues and compensation for migrant workers in Qatar, an issue that has been widely covered and condemned by the world's media.

Even the former FIFA president Sepp Blater has recently admitted that the awarding of the WC to Qatar was a 'mistake' and a 'bad choice'.

What makes it worse is that FIFA have had to issue a letter to all the governing bodies of the countries involved at the WC, instructing them to 'focus on football' rather than shine a light on the immoral and human right issues that have plagued the country.

Alamy

Sarri's Lazio side have been in fine form this season, winning nine of their 14 games in the league as they currently sit second behind runaway leaders Napoli.

In Europe they failed to progress from their Europa League group, but finishing third meant that they dropped down to the Europa Conference League.

They face Romanian side CFR 1907 Cluj in the last 16, with the first leg of the tie taking place on Thursday 16th February 2023.

The World Cup officially kicks off on Sunday 20th November, as host nation Qatar take on Ecuador in Group A.