Donnarumma Denies Italy Players Demanded World Cup Bonuses

Gianluigi Donnarumma, the goalkeeper for Italy's national football team, denied reports suggesting that players requested bonuses for qualifying for the World Cup. He stated that the national team has never asked for rewards for qualifying for tournaments, emphasizing that no one approached the federation for such demands.

Italy, a four-time World Cup champion, missed out on the tournament for the third consecutive time after losing 4-1 on penalties to Bosnia and Herzegovina in the playoff final. Following this failure, the president of the Italian Football Federation, Gabriel Gravina, resigned due to political pressure.

Additionally, former goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon stepped down from his role as the team's delegation chief, and head coach Gennaro Gattuso left his position to start afresh. Donnarumma, aged 27, is focused on bouncing back over the next four years until the next World Cup, with major competitions like the European Championship and the Nations League on the horizon.