Juventus legend Alessandro Del Piero said the impending returns of Romelu Lukaku and Paul Pogba to Serie A could great for Italian football.
Roma‘s victory in the Europa Conference League was the first continental success by an Italian side since Inter‘s Treble victory in 2010.
Only Juventus – twice – have reached a Champions League final in that time and only one Italian team has reached the semi-final since 2017
Asked whether a player like Lukaku struggling in the Premier League and thriving in Serie A is indicative of the difference between the two leagues, ESPN pundit Del Piero said: “Now the Premier League is the best football you can see in terms of number of teams that can perform at a high level and what happened in the Champions League, in the Europa League how they performed is the answer.
“It’s a different kind of sport in some moments. It seems in the Premier League you run more, you have more physicality, you are more spectacular. It’s not exactly like this because in Italy we have this kind of thing but Italy is struggling now: the national team and also in the club teams.
“So last season showed a little bit more. Roma’s win [in the Europa Conference League] is a good hope for the future in the Europa competitions. So Lukaku for Inter and Pogba for Juve could be a great move also for Italian football to become again stronger and have a voice in the Champions League especially. “
However, since Milan’s victory in 2007, there have only been three Italian teams in the final and only one victory.
Parma’s UEFA Cup success in 1999, coupled with Lazio’s Cup Winners’ Cup triumph in the same season, was the last time prior to Roma’s victory in 2022 that an Italian side won Europe’s secondary competition.