Italy CT Luciano Spalletti says the Azzurri’s ‘top player’ is the entire team and insists ‘strong’ midfielders help him ‘fix many things.’
The Italy boss was at the Stadio Nereo Rocco in Trieste on Tuesday to watch Italy U21’s draw against Ireland. The result helped the Azzurrini qualify for the U21 Euros, which will be played in June 2025.
“[Italy U21 coach] Nunziata is a fantastic person; he always tells me everything. Maurizio Viscidi is doing important work with the youth national teams,” Spalletti told Sky Sport Italia.
“We receive updates on everything these guys do. There are many who can aspire to reach the senior team.”
The Azzurri are unbeaten in the last four Nations League games. They beat Israel twice and France in Paris and drew against Belgium.
However, the game against the Red Devils was affected by a red card for Lorenzo Pellegrini in the first half, which contributed to wasting a two-goal lead.
“We have found our way,” insisted Spalletti.
“We lack a real top player, but the one we have is the team. The footballers have collective quality; everyone does everything, so the top football is the entire squad. As I already said, they probably feel more at ease with this system.
“Everyone has improved in terms of personality and mental strength. Even in difficult moments, I see excellent reactions, like Tonali running towards the corner kick the other night after we conceded a goal,” the CT continued.
“It gave us immediate strength. We have many strong midfielders, and this helps you fix many things because they are available for everything and know how to do everything. Both us [senior Italy] and the U21 have quality midfielders.”
Italy will need just one point in the next two games against France and Belgium to qualify for the Nations League quarter-finals, but the Azzurri have already earned a top-seed status for the 2026 World Cup qualifying draw following Spain’s win over Serbia last night.