Luciano Spalletti says he’d be surprised if his players feared not to qualify for Euro 2024 and insists the Azzurri must continue pressing high despite a 3-1 loss against England.
Spalletti lost his first game as Italy’s coach against England on Tuesday and was asked by reporters if he fears not qualifying for the Euros.
“I’d be surprised if my players feared it. We have the quality to face all opponents. This result does not mean we can’t play the brand of football we want,” he said at a post-match press conference.
“We know that situations like the ones of the third goal are not the norm and we know we did the right thing. We have to improve, but we want to continue pressing high, force the opponents to play long balls and defend these long balls in the right way without conceding as we did tonight. Otherwise, we need to change immediately, go backwards and talk about something different and it won’t happen.
“Of course, in some moments, we have to study and understand who will press and when, but that’s what we want to do. Press, tackle hard and have intensity throughout the game.”