Italy enters Euros to regain lost glory

 

Italy team enters Euros to regain lost glory

Last year's 2020 UEFA European Football Championship (Euro) kicked off today (12) after being postponed due to the COVID-19 epidemic, with a strong Italian team entering the tournament with renewed vigor and winning their first match.

 

 History of the European Football Championship

 Italy first qualified for the European Championships in 1968, when they won the title. The final match against Yugoslavia ended in a 1-1 draw, with the second final easily won 2-0.

Subsequently, Italy qualified for the finals of the European Championships in 2000 and 2012, but lost to France and Spain respectively, and had to settle for runners-up status on both occasions.

 

The journey so far

In the last semi-final of the 2016 European Football Championship, the match against Germany ended in a 1-1 draw at the end of regulation time and Italy had to withdraw from the tournament after losing 5-6 on penalties. Conte also resigned.

Under Gian Piero Ventura, who took over the reins, they failed to qualify for the 2018 FIFA World Cup, displaying a backward style of play. It marked the first time since 1992 that Italy had failed to qualify for a major international tournament.

Following Piero's removal, the coaching responsibilities of the team were transferred to Roberto Mancini, an experienced coach, who is now able to bring the Italian team back to their usual talents.

They are once again emerging as the strongest team in world football, having not lost a single game since September 2018. They are unbeaten in 27 consecutive matches, scoring 75 goals, conceding just seven goals to their opponents.

These skills were most prominent in the qualifying tournament for the European Football Championship. They competed in Group ‘J’, winning all 10 matches and securing their qualification with a full record.

In addition to the strong Belgian team, Italy are the only other team to have won all of their qualifications in the qualifying round. In those 10 matches, the Italians scored 37 goals, conceding just four goals to their opponents.

 In the recent international friendly matches, Italy defeated San Marino 7-0 and then the Czech Republic 4-0.

 

Italy Coach and sports style

 

Known as one of the most strategic managers in football, Mancini follows a style of play in which he keeps the ball in his team's possession most of the time. There he can be seen putting his players forward on the field and putting a lot of pressure on the opponents while the opponents are playing with a very strong back line to prevent them from scoring goals.

He is also known for furthering the skills of his team players, experimenting with new players to find the right combination for the team, and adopting a continuous strategic approach, and he has used these techniques within the Italian team as well.

During his tenure as Italy's head coach, he has so far used 70 players in the squad, including the 40 players he used in qualifying for the European Championships. However, it looks like he has found the right combination for the Italian team and it will be crucial for them in the upcoming tournament.

 Mancini has used a 4-3-3 system on many occasions with the Italian team and he is expected to use it at the upcoming European Championships.

 

Italy Team Strengths and Weaknesses

 

Throughout history in the world of football, Italy has been known for its talented backline players and strong defensive style of play. We can see the same in the current Italian team through captains Giorgio Chiellini and Leonardo Bonucci.

 The combination of the Chiellini-Bonucci duo can be described as the best center-back duo in current football, and overcoming them will undoubtedly be a huge challenge for even the most aggressive teams.

 Further, Mancini's style of play enables any player on the team to score goals, so they do not always have to rely on their frontline players to score. This is evidenced by the fact that they have scored 37 goals in 19 qualifiers for the European Championship qualifiers. Furthermore, they are also good at scoring goals on set-piece occasions, which can also be a big challenge for opponents.

 They will also have the great advantage of hosting all three matches in the group stage of the European Championships at the Stadio Olimpico Stadium in Rome, Italy.

 However, the inability of their frontline players to continue to excel will be a big challenge for them going forward in the tournament. While some of their strongest frontline players, such as Ciro Immobile, Lorenzo Insigne and Andrea Belotti, have excelled with their clubs, they have yet to show the same talent in the national team.

 Belotti was their top scorer in the qualifying round, scoring just four goals. Accordingly, it will be crucial for Italy's leading scorers to reach the top of the table if they want to advance in the tournament, especially in the knockout rounds.

Furthermore, their team can be identified as a fairly competitive team due to the fact that the other teams there are Switzerland, Turkey as well as Wales who are very talented teams and they can pose a formidable challenge to any team in their day.

There is no doubt that the injury of their midfielder Marco Verratti will also be a problem for them. Verrati has a big role to play in Mancini's system and it will be important for them to get out of his disability and be among the usual talents.

 

Most important and emerging players

Immobile enters the European Championship after two rounds of stellar performances with its Lazio Sports Club. He scored 36 goals in the 2019-20 season to win the European Gold Cup, while scoring another 20 goals last season.

Accordingly, he has not been able to show such outstanding talent with the Italian national team so far, but it is very important for them to come among the goals and show high performance in the upcoming tournament.

Furthermore, Bonucci's contribution is crucial not only for them in the defensive aspect but also in their advancement. He has a unique ability to pass the ball very well and in the qualifying round he also managed to score three goals in front of his name. Jorginho, who also excelled for Chelsea, who won the UEFA Champions League this season, will no doubt be an important player for them throughout the tournament.

Emerging players, their young midfielders Manuel Locatelli and Nicolo Barella are expected to excel in the tournament.

 

Italy Pool

Goalkeepers: Gianluigi Donnarumma, Alex Meret (Napoli), Salvatore Sirigu (Torino)

Back row players: Francesco Acerbi (Lazio), Alessandro Bastoni (Inter), Leonardo Bonucci (Juventus), Giorgio Chiellini (Juventus), Giovanni Di Lorenzo (Napoli), Emerson Palmieri (Chelsea), Leo Sproz (Floless) ), Rafael Toloi (Atalanta)

Middle order players: Nicolò Barella (Inter), Bryan Cristante (Roma), Jorginho (Chelsea), Manuel Locatelli (Sassuolo), Lorenzo Pellegrini (Roma), Stefano Sensi (Inter), Marco Verratti (Paris)

Front row players: Andrea Belotti (Torino), Domenico Berardi (Sassuolo), Federico Bernardeschi (Juventus), Federico Chiesa (Juventus), Ciro Immobile (Lazio), Lorenzo Insigne (Napoli) (D)