8. He Banned Ketchup, Mayonnaise, Singing, And Ice At Sunderland
Every Paolo Di Canio story is tinged with a degree of the surreal, and his few months at Sunderland are crammed full of incidents that, at the time, looked all the world to be some sort of a wind up. After being appalled at the conditions he'd found the club and its players in following the departure of Martin O'Neill, Di Canio set about stamping his very unique style of discipline of his new charges. Out would go the lazy attitudes and unprofessionalism that had got the club in the relegation zone, and in would come a new brand of honour and determination moulded by his own will. In theory, anyway. What did this vigilante brand of management consist of? Well, for starters, ice was banned in coke as he felt it gave the players indigestion problems. Then out went ketchup and mayonnaise with their meals as they apparently cause "chemical problems" to the liver and to the stomach. Most incredibly of all though, Di Canio imposed an instant fine on any players caught singing in the showers after training or a match as he viewed it as an unnecessary distraction that could ruin a players state of mind and concentration. "In general the players are getting the message" he claimed in an interview given during 2013's preseason. 5 games later he was sacked, and condiments made a glorious return to the Sunderland canteen.
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