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The national side have been on the hunt for a new head coach after losing Gennaro Gattuso in April.
Gattuso oversaw a failed World Cup qualifying campaign and left the position as Italy missed the tournament for the third time in succession. Their last appearance was at the 2014 World Cup in Brazil.
He has spent the last year working as a coach for UAE Pro League club Dubai United.
”Over the last few days, I have followed with great bitterness the debate that has arisen in regard to my name and the possibility of taking on the role of head coach of the Italian national team,” Pirlo wrote.
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”Throughout my career – first as a footballer and now as a coach – I have always conducted my work in full compliance with the laws of the countries in which I have worked and the contracts I have signed.
”The professional arrangement at the centre of the recent controversy stems from my work in the United Arab Emirates and is exclusively commercial and sporting in nature. To attribute a political significance to this collaboration is to ascribe to me beliefs that I have never expressed and which do not reflect my views.
”I regret that a decision of a sporting nature has so quickly been dragged into a public debate which has ended up attributing to me meanings and intentions that are not my own.”
He added: ”I would like to thank (Paolo) Maldini (technical director of the Italian football federation) and Leonardo (his advisor) for the esteem and trust they have shown in me. I am well aware of their expertise, their integrity, and the love they have always shown for Italian football.
”My love for Italy does not depend on a particular role. It is part of my history, my identity, and will continue to be with me, always.”
Pirlo is regarded as one of the finest Italian players of his generation, and of all time.
He won the World Cup with Italy in their famous 2006 victory, earning 116 caps as a player.
Pirlo joined AC Milan in the 2001/02 season, playing 401 times for the club and scoring 41 goals. He then joined Juventus for the 2011/12 campaign, staying for four seasons as he notched 164 appearances and 19 goals.
He then finished his career with three seasons at MLS side New York City FC.
In his time as a player, he won six Serie A titles and two UEFA Champions League titles, amongst other trophies.
Before Dubai United, he managed the Juventus under-23 side and had a spell as the first-team head coach. He then had tenures at Fatih Karagumruk in Turkey, before managing Sampdoria in 2023/24.
