Former international referee pierluigi collina calls on players

Former international referee Pierluigi Collina calls on players

he is widely regarded as one of the best referees to grace the game of football. however, pierluigi collina remains concerned about what he's left behind. with one eye on next year's african cup of nations and european championships, the 47-year-old italian, who retired in 2006, thinks that attitudes towards officials must change if standards are to improve. soundbite (english) "the game could be more beautiful if the players showed some respect towards the rules and the referee is the one who guarantees the respect of the rules on the field of play. so there is a big need of respect in football and i would say not only towards officials but between players, between spectators at the stadium." supercaption: pierluigi collina collina also believes that players need to act responsibly on and off the pitch, especially when the major tournaments come around. soundbite (english) "they have to be aware of the big impact their behaviour could have on youngsters for instance. they are avid of everything coming from the television or coming from big examples. so during the euro 2008 there will be a bigger responsibility on their shoulders to show everybody which can be their correct behaviour on the pitch." supercaption: pierluigi collina collina's views will not change the game in 2008. but in his current role as a non-paid consultant to the italian football referees association, he'll have many more chances to get his message across.