Rafa Benitez was finally sacked on Wednesday by the Serie A club after days of speculation over his future, and rumours have suggested that Spalletti is among the front runners to replace the Spaniard.
But Maxim Mirtofanov, the Zenit president, said: “Spalletti himself had told us that he would stay at Zenit at least for another season. I think that is more than enough for us to trust him. Spalletti is unique. It would be simply impossible for him to deceive or lie to us about his future plans.”
