Italy proved in the quarter-final with Belgium that they can do it all, writes Susy Campanale, as they defend, attack and entertain better than anyone at the Euros.
In showbusiness, they call it a triple threat: a performer who can act, sing and dance at the top professional level. Italy are the football equivalent of a triple threat: they can attack, defend and entertain. They are more than worthy UEFA EURO 2020 semi-finalists and have every reason to target the trophy.
Yet it doesn’t seem to matter how beautifully Italy play, how attractive their passing, how high their press, how many goals they score or chances they create, the only thing pundits around the world focus on is their rugged defending. Let it be clear, the victory over Belgium was largely down to their stylish football, the pace of their passing and only towards the end did they batten down the hatches. A great team must be able to do both, and I continue to not see a side as complete as the Azzurri in Euro 2020.
This was easily the best game of the competition so far, as two teams went at it with quality, showing that you can string together a series of passes quickly and not just try to bore the opposition into submission. The pace of the first half in particular was a breath of fresh air compared to some of the sluggish displays we’ve seen from the other big nations, including Spain in their earlier quarter-final against Switzerland.
It’s precisely what we were repeatedly told the Serie A sides could not do in European competition, that our tempo was too timid, we moved the ball too slowly and predictably, because there was a fundamental lack of technique. Evidently, that is not the reason for it. The same players are running rings around their opponents in the Euros, so the technique clearly was not the issue. If anything, it’s the players knowing who to pass it to, not just to the teammate nearest to them. I’ve often said Maurizio Sarri had the same problems at Chelsea and Juventus, when he couldn’t get them to understand the routines and channels, it all became slow and predictable. Despite only working with these players for a few weeks a year, Roberto Mancini has got this squad moving like clockwork.
Of course, when all else fails you can rely on Lorenzo Insigne’s right-foot curler. He’s had a few practice attempts already at the Euros, but it finally came off when it mattered most.
Nobody has been as consistent as the Nazionale, as no matter who plays, they seem to know exactly what it is they need to do. Hopefully that will also be the case when Emerson Palmieri steps in for Leonardo Spinazzola. The Roma left-back has always been desperately unlucky with injuries and he should be in the eventual Team of the Tournament regardless. Seeing him stretchered off in tears was painful for everyone, especially now we know it’s an Achilles tendon tear that will require quite a few months on the sidelines. He is the one we may well miss the most, but perhaps it’ll help to have someone a little more defensive back there if we are to use Federico Chiesa and Lorenzo Insigne upfront.
What we saw yet again is that the only area Mancini needs to improve in is recognising when it is just not someone’s day. Domenico Berardi and Ciro Immobile both had to make dozens of bad first touches and eventually resort to ridiculous attempted aerial volleys before Mancio hauled them off the field. This doesn’t mean they should never play, far from it, but when it’s clear this is not going to happen and their confidence is just sapping away by the minute, the decision has to be made for them.