Italy showed quite a bit of promise during their UEFA Nations League games in the international break. It didnโt start well as they lost to Belgium but improvements were seen against Turkey and France, with Roberto Mancini confirming that the average age could yet go down.
The Azzurri boss spoke to Sky from the Vialli Award ceremony and was asked a host of questions about the last four games.
Mancini noted that the team needs some balance but it will get younger, which will give players more space to make mistakes.
He said โ CM: โHow do I rate Italy? I think we need balance ; the first match wasnโt a disaster, and itโs not incredible at this moment. We need to have balance: the team needs to grow; itโs a young team that will become even younger as the months go by , and it also needs to make mistakes. We need to maintain balance, I think thatโs the best thing.โ
He also indicated that many young players will come through from the Under-21s soon, as they have impressed in the last few games.
โFirst of all, congratulations because the Under 21s achieved an excellent result. They qualified directly for the European Championship, I think thatโs positive. Congratulations to Baldini for what heโs done: there will certainly be many good lads who will come to the national team.โ
Already shoots of promise have been seen from the national team. Michael Kayode impressed and even Issa Doumbia took his chance against Turkey this week. Antonio Vergara also made a mark and Alessandro Romano got to show his skillset in the heart of the park.
With the U21s thriving, they will indeed get the chance to play for the senior side soon.
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Kaustubh Pandey โ GIFN
