#INSERT type:image caption:Blatter used Twiter to voice his displeasure at Arrigo Sacchi's remarks. END#
FIFA president Sepp Blatter has hit out at Arrigo Sacchi after the former Italy coach said there were "too many black players, even in the youth teams."
Sacchi made his comments after the Viareggio youth tournament, an annual event in Tuscany, with La Gazetta dello Sport reporting him as saying: "I'm certainly not racist and my history as a coach proves that, starting from [Frank] Rijkaard.
"But looking at the Viareggio tournament I feel like saying that there are too many black players, even in the youth teams."
Sacchi, who also coached AC Milan, went on to say he believed Italy had "no dignity, no pride" and that "it's not possible that our teams should have 15 foreign players in the squad."
He later said his remarks had been misinterpreted and that he had "only wanted to underline that we are losing our national pride and identity."
But they sparked an angry response from Blatter, who took to Twitter to say he had been "shocked" by what had been said.
The FIFA president wrote: "Pride and dignity is not a question of skin colour. Shocked by Arrigo Sacchi's comments. Stop it."
Pride and dignity is not a question of skin colour. Shocked by Arrigo Sacchi's comments. Stop it.
- Joseph S Blatter (@SeppBlatter) February 18, 2015
However, ex-England coach Fabio Capello told Spanish radio show Al Primer Toque he did not believe Sacchi's comments were racist, saying he was concerned that clubs were filling their youth systems with overseas players.
"[Sacchi] said there was a need for more Italian players, not referring to the colour of their skin," he added.
"It is not racism -- it is that we need more Italian players in the youth systems, an Italian identity. We also have Italians of colour, but they should be Italians.
"In the youth system, there are eight or nine foreign players in the same club -- that is what Sacchi was talking about."
Information from ESPN FC correspondent Dermot Corrigan was used in this report.