Italy CT Roberto Mancini claimed Gianluigi Donnarumma is ‘the best goalkeeper in the world’ and said ‘the doors to the national team are open’ for Mario Balotelli.
Mancini’s men failed to overcome Spain in the UEFA Nations League semi-final this week and the unbeaten run of 37 games ended.
The Azzurri CT praised La Roja but felt the red card for Leonardo Bonucci ‘affected’ the match.
“I don’t think the attitude was wrong,” Mancini said, according to La Gazzetta dello Sport. “We have always recognised that Spain have played well technically for over 20 years, they are more used to it than us.
“We knew they would have more possession, but the first half could have ended 1-1. The red card clearly affected the second half.
“It would have been another game with 11 against 11. In the second half it could have ended with a goal for Spain, but we didn’t give them much chances and we managed to score one goal, hoping to add another.
“It would have been very difficult. This match must give us strength and the awareness that we are a great team.”
Then Mancini spoke about the success at the Euros and was asked about his final words for the players ahead of the opening game against Turkey.
“I don’t remember them, but we were convinced that we could do something special,” he said. “Our thought was to win, with a very long month and a lot of problems for face, but we knew we had a good group.”
The European Championship was pushed for one year and one of the protagonists at the Finals was Juventus midfielder Manuel Locatelli, who earned a place in the Italy squad after a good season with Sassuolo.
“The postponement was important, because many younger players were able to play more with their clubs,” Mancini said.
“That year gave us more chances, they were able to play more, and Locatelli is the example, I thought I’d take him for the World Cup.”
Mancini gave almost all the players some minutes in the Finals, with goalkeeper Alex Meret the only player who didn’t feature.
“I thought about it, maybe in the Final if we were winning 3-0, I would have given him the last three minutes,” Mancini said. “Against Wales I had finished the substitutions, there was no more space.
“We will pay him back in another situation. He’s sad, of course. But it was important to give everyone the chance to be present at the European Championship.”
Federico Chiesa was the key against Austria in the last 16, when the Juventus winger entered and turned the game around for the Azzurri. Mancini explained why Domenico Berardi started.
“It was just a condition problem,” he said. “Berardi was a little better at the beginning. We decided to start like that, but we knew he would be decisive.
“The lads who came off the bench changed the game.”
Italy: Donnarumma delivers message after being booed at San Siro
But against Belgium, the coach had no intentions of changing the formation.
“I had no intensions of changing the team, sometimes you struggle. I knew that the match against Belgium would be a great match.”
Mancini revealed no players asked to not take a penalty in the shootouts against Spain and England.
“They were all very courageous, we had reached the semi-final, we had the last effort to get there,” Mancini continued. “It’s not easy to take a penalty after 120 minutes, in the sixth game of the European Championship.
“We knew who the penalty takers should be, then the moment takes over, the certainty of being calm.
“Those who tries can make a mistake. Our luck has been to have the best goalkeeper in the world at the moment.”
Vincenzo Montella has nominated Mario Balotelli as a possible returnee for the Azzurri and Mancini said the door is always open.
“I spent many years with him,” Mancini said. “Now I’m vaccinated. I don’t know, Mario is 31 years old, the doors of the national team are open, nobody has ever forgotten.
“If there’s a possibility, we evaluate all the positive situations for the team.”