Claudio Ranieri’s mum, 99, urged him to play Damien Duff at Chelsea and will give him tips on Fulham starting XI
Both Craven Cottage assistant boss Scott Parker and granny Renata will give Italian tips on his lineup for tomorrow's clash against Southampton
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CLAUDIO RANIERI will get advice from Scott Parker and his 99-YEAR-OLD mum before naming his first Fulham line-up.
New boss Ranieri, 67, has had only one full day of training with his squad.
He will pick the brains of assistant coach Parker for tomorrow’s home clash with Southampton.
But the Italian’s mum, granny Renata, will also give her opinion — just as she did when he was manager at Chelsea 18 years ago. Ranieri said: “Whenever Damien Duff didn’t play she would say, ‘Why don’t you put Damien Duff on the pitch’.
“My mum is 99 years old and loves football. She supports Roma but now Fulham, of course. In fact, she called me and I was too busy . . . I need to ring her back.”
Ranieri, who replaced Slavisa Jokanovic nine days ago, held a team meeting with his full squad for the first time yesterday after they all returned to Craven Cottage after international duty.
Ranieri and Parker, Jokanovic’s former No 2, have just one training session today to prepare for the former Leicester chief’s first game in charge.
Ranieri added: “Scotty is very important because when I think about something I say, ‘Hey, Scotty, what do you think about it?’.
“He is my assistant. He knows the club but for me it is important that he knows the players very well.
“And then sometimes I have an idea and say, ‘Scotty, what do you think about this and this and this?’. And I believe him.”
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Ranieri is still labelled the Tinkerman from his days at Chelsea yet Jokanovic was sacked after being criticised for failing to play the same back four in successive Premier League games.
The Italian said: “I will be the Tinkerman — but tinker cleverly.
“My message is the team is a good one. Now we must show fighting spirit.
“It’s not easy to change direction but it’s important all together that we must do our best and be with good spirit and very attentive tactically.”