Italy
PRIDE IN IT ALY’S TEAM HAS BEEN RESTORED
Roberto Mancini could reasonably claim to be the man who saved the Italian national team.
When he took the Azzurri reins in May 2018, one of international football’s most successful sides was at rock bottom after their failure to qualify for the World Cup in Russia – a catastrophe unheard of in 60 years. But Mancini meticulously rebuilt from the ruins to create a team with a clear identity and a promising crop of youngsters competing for selection.
The atmosphere couldn’t be more different. National pride in Italy’s football team has been restored, sparking hope for the future and a cautious belief they can challenge at Euro 2020.
In qualifying, Mancini broke double World Cup- winning manager Vittorio Pozzo’s record from the 1930s by leading the Azzurri to 11 consecutive victories. Italy qualified with three games to spare
– another record – and won every game to top their group with a goal difference of + 33. Only Belgium performed better.
They then won last year’s UEFA Nations League group, defeating Poland, the Netherlands and Bosnia and Herzegovina along the way. Following March’s round of 2022 World Cup qualifiers, Italy are unbeaten in 25 games, equalling Marcello Lippi’s 2006 World Cup- winning side.
The main concern is the forward line. European golden boot winner Ciro Immobile hasn’t yet replicated his superb Lazio form in an Azzurri shirt, and no one else has made the No. 9 spot theirs. Italy have overcome the problem thus far by spreading the load: 19 players scored during qualifying, but Torino’s Andrea Belotti topped the charts with four.
Nevertheless, a new generation of talents, all 24 and under, such as Inter midfielder Nicolo Barella, goalkeeping sensation Gianluigi Donnarumma, Juventus’ on- loan Federico Chiesa and Roma’s playmaker Nicolo Zaniolo make the Italians an engaging side to watch.
“With an extra year, the young guys will have a chance to improve,” Mancini said after the tournament’s postponement.
He wasn’t wrong, with yet more promising youngsters Inter centre- back Alessandro Bastoni and Atalanta midfielder Matteo Pessina have since emerged as contenders for a squad place.
A group featuring Turkey, Wales and Switzerland should launch the Azzurri – and their banger of a national anthem – into the knockout stages. And beyond.
LESSON FROM QUALIFYING
Forget the heartbreak and the humiliation of 2017. The Azzurri are back and head into the Euros brimming with confidence, conceding just four goals along the way.
STRENGTHS
Italy possess a fine blend of youth and experience, with grizzled centre- back stalwarts Giorgio Chiellini and Leonardo Bonucci able to lend advice to greener squad members. A gifted Azzurri midfield – led by Chelsea’s Jorginho, who merely allows a football on loan to others – are tough to pinch the ball off.
WEAKNESSES
The lack of a reliable goalscorer. There are other options to Immobile or Belotti, like Sassuolo’s Francesco Caputo and PSG’S Moise Kean, but the question of who can reliably stick the ball in the net remains.
MOST LIKELY TO...
Surprise people with their youth. Italy’s new generation may have gone unnoticed for those who last saw them at Euro 2016, and the likes of Barella and Chiesa will be a treat for non- Serie A viewers. So many youngsters are breaking into the side that Puma brought out a green ‘ renaissance’ kit in October 2019 to “celebrate the many young talents becoming protagonists”. Us neither.
LEAST LIKELY TO...
Be involved in a goal- fest. Italy are easy on the eye, but they haven’t betrayed the time- honoured Azzurri tradition of defensive resilience: they conceded six goals in 16 games across Euro qualifying and the 2020- 21 Nations League.
WHAT THEY HOPE WILL HAPPEN
Inspired by his consistent club form, Immobile will go on the rampage during the group stages. The momentum will carry Mancini’s fresh- faced side all the way, heralding a bright new dawn.
WHAT WILL HAPPEN
Italy top their group and knock out Ukraine in the last 16. Excitement reaches fever pitch ahead of the quarter- final against Belgium, where Inter’s Romelu Lukaku scores an extra- time winner, making for some awkward conversations when he later returns to the San Siro.