Luciano Spalletti praised the ‘mental strength’ of Italy to fight back from a goal after 14 seconds to beat France 3-1 in Paris for the Nations League. ‘Sandro Tonali was magnificent.’
It was the worst ever start to an Azzurri match, conceding after a record 14 seconds when Bradley Barcola robbed a distracted Giovanni Di Lorenzo to go clear on goal.
However, a simply magnificent Federico Dimarco equaliser sparked the comeback and gave them much-needed confidence, winning 3-1 in Paris with Davide Frattesi and Giacomo Raspadori goals.
“That was the key to the game, they reacted straight away, tried to relax the team and then played the game they wanted to. So I doubly praise them,” Spalletti told RAI Sport.
“It is never too much, there is always the opportunity to do something better. It was important to be a team.”
Di Lorenzo was caught in possession for the opening goal, followed by a series of truly banal errors in the simplest passes.
“There was so much tension that even the tiniest situation could create madness, that’s what happens in our football. This is where mental strength becomes decisive, as you have the fear you might not achieve something, but that is what we need to fix within ourselves.
“We chose a group of players who are always in the game. They are a little fresher than they were at the end of last season, probably we were fortunate to find a group of young players who are eager to prove themselves. Individual desire and passion is the key for any success.”
Spalletti hails Tonali on comeback
Newcastle United midfielder Tonali made his comeback for the Italy squad after 10 months out for breaching betting regulations.
“His performance was magnificent. We were afraid he wouldn’t have 90 minutes in his legs, but in the last five minutes he sprinted down the flank and went clear on goal by himself,” smiled Spalletti.
“We have rediscovered a fantastic player.”
Belgium beat Israel 3-1 in the other fixture of this group and Italy will face Israel on neutral turf in Budapest on Monday evening.
The Nazionale made it to the Nations League Final Four twice before and are on track with this result to do it again.