We all know how important the Italian national team has been in the history of football, but the truth is that, in recent history, they haven’t fared too well, apart from the last EURO they won, they haven’t qualified for the World Cup for two consecutive editions. Even so, this new crop of Italian players is capable of competing against anyone and putting Italy back on the footballing map.
So far, this edition of the EURO has started with a 2-1 win over Albania. Although the result may seem small, Italy looked very comfortable during the match. Only a grotesque mistake by Dimarco on a throw-in created danger in Donnarumma’s goal.
What we really saw on the pitch was Italy’s superiority against an Albania side that was outclassed in every respect. Italy are even underrated to a certain extent, as they are in a difficult group with Spain and Croatia, and there are three very superior teams in terms of names, many people don’t take them into account to win the title. But the reality is that the ‘Azzurri’ are the reigning and defending champions.
You have to add to this that the current national team have a very interesting team. Starting with the defence, they have two top level centre-backs in Bastoni, who scored the equaliser against Albania, and Calafiori, who had a historic season with Bologna in the Champions League.
The two full-backs, Di Lorenzo and Dimarco, seem to me to be of the highest level, even though the latter made a blunder. Both full-backs are very deep, which allows the wingers to close down and they occupy the whole lane.
In the midfield, we can find great players like Jorginho or Fratesi, but without a doubt, the compass that commands this Italy is none other than Nicolò Barella. The great pearl of Italian football has finally matured and, at 27 years of age, he is leading Italy to what would be his third EURO.
Up front, there are two players who are extremely important for the football that Italy intends to play: Federico Chiesa and Lorenzo Pellegrini. On paper, both are wingers, but on the pitch, they are free to move anywhere in three quarters.
Up front is something that Italy have always lacked in recent years, despite always being known for having great strikers in their history. Now, they seem to have found their reference in Scamacca, a player with a wealth of attacking resources, who scored 19 goals for Atalanta this season.
We will see how Italy’s progress at the EURO continues and whether they are capable of springing a surprise in any game.
Their next opponents will be Spain, who they face on Thursday, in a match that will decide the outcome of the group.
Main image: @Azzurri.
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