Fabio Capello explains the errors Italy must not commit against Ukraine and insists Serie A has improved ‘only thanks to foreign players.’
Luciano Spalletti’s Italy meet Ukraine at San Siro tonight in a key Euro 2024 qualifying fixture. The Azzurri were held to a 1-1 draw against North Macedonia on Saturday.
“The truth is that we are no longer accustomed to a quick and physical kind of football. We struggled to cope with North Macedonia’s pressing,” Capello told Gazzetta.
“We are not thinking and acting quickly enough because the league [Serie A] has improved only thanks to foreign players. We won the Euros two years ago, but we didn’t dominate.”
So, what must Italy do to beat Ukraine?
“Spalletti must rediscover defensive coverage, in which we were masters. That’s how we can get back to being a team. Then in attack, I noticed that our strikers were too static inside the opponents’ box.”
Spalletti would agree with this, given that he highlighted the same problem during a pre-match press conference on Monday, saying the Azzurri will have to “keep the ball” and create space to have goal-scoring opportunities at San Siro.