What's happening with the Italian national team: Not a disaster yet, but...

A HORRIFIC TORTURE

It was not a normal confrontation, not a match, but a truly horrifying torture in which only Donnarumma's usual brilliance and the crossbar saved Italy from a heavier defeat. In their first big "test" on the road to defending the championship, Italy failed miserably not in terms of score, but in terms of image, style of play, tactics and personnel. The 1-0 scoreline is a deceptive number, which does not say that, in fact, the Italian team was inferior to Spain in every aspect. Spain dominated the match for 80 minutes and their only regret was that they only won by a single goal, an own goal from Calafiori, one of the rare good Italian players.

Riccardo Calafiori collapsed on the pitch in frustration after scoring an own goal as Italy lost 0-1 to Spain.

Before the match, Italy's number one sports daily Gazzetta dello Sport devoted nearly 10 large-format pages to talking about the match. The ideas put forward were convincing. Chiesa had to play faster, stronger, attacking the position between Spain's left centre-back and left-back. Scamacca, score, this is your night, how much longer. Demetrio Albertini, the former Italy midfielder who played in Spain, even called on Italy to attack and "show them who we are". That night in Gelsenkirchen, everything was exposed. Chiesa, the fastest and most capable player, did not put enough pressure to "pin" Cucurella on that flank. Scamacca had no chance.

C LOW TEAM QUALITY

A performance of the Italian style of play was completely illusory when the ball control time, the ideas of play, the opportunities were all in the hands of the Spaniards. The only accurate finish of the entire match by the Italians only came in the 85th minute. Perhaps the haunting of this defeat will remain in the minds of Italian fans for many years to come. The difference is too obvious and people are shocked to realize a truth that they themselves had to admit before the tournament took place: the quality of the Italian squad in this tournament is really low. And for those people, applying the philosophy of playing football that Spalletti still worships, which is to control the ball a lot, pass short and attack, as his Napoli did in the 2022-2023 Scudetto winning season, cannot be applied. The helplessness is not only shown outside the pitch, with Spalletti, but also with another main character, Di Lorenzo. Always tormented by Williams' dizzying moves, Di Lorenzo had no one to support him in defense, except Chiesa, who was also helpless.

Now, the criticism of the defeat by the Italian press has gone beyond pointing out Spalletti's problems. After the match, Gazzetta dello Sport revisited an issue that has been raised after every painful defeat of the Italian team in recent years. "If Spain can assemble such a good young force, it is certainly no coincidence," wrote writer Andre di Caro. "But we cannot do that. Seeing Italian players in their 20s playing for big clubs is a myth. We do not have the patience to nurture them, to accept that they can make mistakes." He concluded that, at this EURO, having a squad full of stars does not mean being able to play well, as France and England failed to do in their matches, but at least they have stars, quality players, while Italy does not. A clear and sincere acknowledgement of the level of the current Italian players.

The Azzurri’s poor night in Gelsenkirchen provided another certainty: Italy will not finish top of the group. They will need to defend their second-place finish with at least a draw to qualify for the next round, and will likely face the runners-up in Group B, which Switzerland currently hold. A loss to Croatia would be disastrous if Albania beat Spain in the other game. That is a real possibility, as Italy slip to the bottom of the group.

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/chuyen-gi-dang-xay-ra-o-doi-tuyen-y-chua-phai-la-tham-hoa-nhung-185240621204837863.htm