Roberto Mancini believes Italy must move away from the mentality of ‘the final result being more important than how we get somewhere.’
Italy were thrust into a crisis after their failure to qualify for the 2018 World Cup, and Mancini feels the Azzurri’s problem lies with an archaic approach to football rather than a lack of quality.
“In Italy, the final result is more important than how we get somewhere,” the CT told Esquire.
Roberto Mancini believes Italy must move away from the mentality of ‘the final result being more important than how we get somewhere.’
Italy were thrust into a crisis after their failure to qualify for the 2018 World Cup, and Mancini feels the Azzurri’s problem lies with an archaic approach to football rather than a lack of quality.
“In Italy, the final result is more important than how we get somewhere,” the CT told Esquire.
“We’ve won with this mentality for decades, but football has changed. If you can’t set up a team who also play good football, you can’t keep winning.
“I came in at a difficult time. Many said Italy had no good players coming through, but I think Italy have always raised good players, even at difficult times.
“There are [players coming through] and, since they’re also young, I thought we could try something different.
“In my day, 20-year-olds already had 150 first-team appearances under their belts. They need to play more.
“They’re all good technically, but experience is crucial, especially what you pick up from international games.
“The national team can do so much for Italian football, as can even lads who no-one knows or who play in the lower Leagues.
“I hope, within a few years, that we get back to seeing teams who each have 5-6 good Italians.”