Leonardo Bonucci sent a stark message to Mario Balotelli. “He needs to understand to play for Italy you have to work together.”
Leonardo Bonucci sent a stark message to Mario Balotelli. “He needs to understand to play for Italy you have to work together.”
The centre-back scored in tonight’s 2-0 Euro 2016 qualifier against Norway, while Sassuolo” data-scaytid=”4″>Sassuolo striker Simone Zaza opened his account.
“In Italy we already knew Zaza and he scored a great goal for Sassuolo against Juventus last season,” Bonucci told Rai Sport.
“He is wise for his age and ready to work hard, while he has real physical gifts.”
Zaza has effectively replaced Balotelli in the side and with this form it’ll be tricky for the Liverpool striker to get back in.
“Mario will certainly have seen the games. If he does what the Coach asks of him, then he can be a reference point for this Nazionale.
“The problem is he needs to understand to play for the Nazionale you have to work all together, run together and move constantly.
“We’ve never had a problem with Mario. We know what his personality is like and during the World Cup I tried talking to him, but we know his character is his Achilles heel. It can make him strong and weak at the same time.”
Bonucci plays from the back, especially in the absence of injured Andrea Pirlo.
“I certainly like this role and the Coach put many elements in my hands to help the team move. I like responsibility on my shoulders.
“As we have always said with Conte at Juventus, the important thing is for all the players to contribute to defence. The new boys can attest to how focused and pernickety he is on ensuring nobody relaxes for a second.”
Conte was his usual spectacular self on the touchline in Oslo, which was no surprise for Bonucci.
“Everyone knows what he’s like and we’ve all got those images in our minds from his time at Juventus. He is the first to transmit his grit and hunger to the players, which can also be seen by everyone else on the touchline.
“We haven’t had much time to oil the gears of a system that for us Juventini was practically automatic. We’ve had the chance to apply these ideas on the field, which makes us very happy and builds our confidence going forward.
“When you know what to do and everything is planned out, it comes naturally and you feel more confident.”
Malta and Azerbaijan are Italy’s next opponents in the group before Croatia.
“On paper they are teams we can certainly beat, but as the Coach will no doubt say, unexpected things happen the moment you relax. We need the same approach as always, with that hunger and determination.”