Ventura: Huge Italy potential, but…

Giampiero Ventura believes Italy have ‘so many players with potential’ but warns the technical aspect remains ‘secondary’.

Ventura failed to take Italy to their first World Cup for 60 years, but the veteran Coach made it clear he was no less of an Azzurri fan ahead of their Nations League games.

“Will I watch Italy on Friday? I’ve always been a fan of the national team,” he told Radio Anch’io Sport.

Giampiero Ventura believes Italy have ‘so many players with potential’ but warns the technical aspect remains ‘secondary’.

Ventura failed to take Italy to their first World Cup for 60 years, but the veteran Coach made it clear he was no less of an Azzurri fan ahead of their Nations League games.

“Will I watch Italy on Friday? I’ve always been a fan of the national team,” he told Radio Anch’io Sport.

“The Azzurri have value and I’ll watch the game with great passion and support. It’ll be tough for Mancini, but it was the same before.

“The young players haven’t played much, but so many of them have potential. It’ll be good once they’re able to express themselves.

“They need experience, no matter where they get it. They don’t necessarily get more chances abroad.

“The same thing happened to Immobile too. He didn’t play much at Borussia Dortmund or in Spain. He came back to Italy and did great things.

“In Italy there’s not enough time for young players to mature. We need results and the Coaches can’t always let them play.

“In academies, the technical aspect has become secondary. Now we prefer the tactical aspect to basics and technique.”