Roberto Mancini acknowledges he and the players ‘owe Italians an apology’ for failing to qualify for the 2022 World Cup. ‘We have to turn a page and change something for the long-term.’
The Nazionale had already disappointed by finishing runners-up to Switzerland in the group phase, then lost 1-0 at home to North Macedonia in the play-off semi-final.
They will therefore play a friendly this evening in Turkey against the other side that lost their play-off to Portugal.
It kicks off in Konya at 19.45 UK time.
“We gave it our all, but we still owe Italians an apology, because we will not give them the same joy that we did in July,” Mancini told RAI Sport.
Just eight months after winning UEFA EURO 2020, which started with a 3-0 victory over Turkey in Rome, the Azzurri find themselves again having to start from scratch.
“Tonight’s game is going to be difficult on a psychological level for both teams. For us, it can be the start of something: we need to turn a page and change something for the long-term. Seeing a few young players in action could be useful.”
Italy also missed out on the 2018 World Cup, meaning for at least 12 years they will not be taking part in this tournament.
An entire generation of Azzurri supporters risk growing up without seeing their team in the World Cup.
“The biggest disappointment is that we wanted to give 60 million Italians that joy, including children who have never seen the Nazionale,” continued Mancini.
“When we started this run four years ago, we said we wanted to bring Italians closer to the national team. We didn’t manage it the way we did in July, so now we’ve got to ensure they don’t drift away again.”