So it’s done. With a narrow victory over Slovenia, Italy booked their place at Euro 2012 with two matches to spare. An impressive record sees them as the best team defensively in Europe with only one goal conceded and seven wins and a draw in the bag. So it’s all looking good for next summer then?
Well, if you had asked that question a mere month ago, I would have replied with more optimism, but the truth is that the last couple of games (1-0 v Faroes, 1-0 v Slovenia) have thrown up more questions than answers, the largest of which is not the poor performances, but rather why they appear to have caused Prandelli to question his own project.
To understand, you first have to look at what Prandelli was building. It wasn’t just the fact that Italy beat the best team in the world ever TM Spain, but the way they played against them and, previously, against Estonia and Slovenia that gave cause for optimism. Prandelli seemed to have settled on his midfield of creators rather than destroyers, and there was hushed talk of Italy playing like Barcelona. Ludicrous as that may sound, it was not far off – a short, quick passing game that also had a directness to it that saw Italy string together over 900 passes against Estonia with a completion rate over 90%.
That seemed to continue against Spain as Prandelli gave the likes of Cassano, Rossi and Montolivo full freedom to express themselves and it was paying off. It showed up the myth of defensive Italian football and there was genuine hope that this group was suddenly on the verge of something great.
Then came a cold windy September night in the Faroe Islands and Prandelli seemed to lose all conviction. “Don’t talk about Barcelona,” he said after the game, suggesting Italy needed to be more concrete in finishing chances. He had a point; the display against the Faroes started very well, but soon petered out.
And yet, should he really be scrapping his game plan because of one poor performance in September in an inhospitable stadium against an admittedly weak side? Of course not, and yet, that’s what seemed to happen against Slovenia. The short quick passing game disappeared for large parts, replaced by big punted long balls (albeit accurate ones) from De Rossi looking for Cassano and Rossi.
That game was of course eventually won, Pazzini capitalising off a loose ball to finish well, but it was hardly a convincing performance. It was, in fact, more like the old Italy; laboured, slow, predictable. It was only when the wildcard Balotelli (ironically a player that Prandelli seemed to be losing faith in) came on that things changed; say what you like about Super Mario, but he is direct and unpredictable and is the very definition of a game changer.
There is no doubt that Prandelli is the right man for the job, but to move forward, he must now have the courage of his convictions to allow Italy to play in the free flowing manner that he had begun to adopt. He has the players to do it, and he must not let one poor performance against the Faroes change his mind. If he stays the course, and can find a space for mad Mario in the team, the future for this Italy side could be very bright indeed.
Follow Marco on Twitter: @Marcoarrinaldi
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Lets not forget Serie A has not started yet and these were two very important games where the result was the most important aspect. Forza Italia!
Hi J-J – thanks for the comment. However, that was kind of what I was driving at in the article; Prandelli should not let these two September performances divert him from turning Italy into an attack minded team. There are a whole number of reasons (some more excusable than others) that we didn’t play well in these games, and he should bear that in mind before ditching the idea of making us play a quick, short attacking passing game.
I enjoyed the read. I think all successful teams need to be at some point adaptable. His selections remaining consistent allow growth and show his faith in the tactics he has employed. I’m just so delighted with how much progress we have made under Prandelli coupled with his ideologies that I can’t help but be optimistic!
Furthermore I’d say Pirlo sets the tempo and I trust his tempo of play. The team will still be inexperienced at the Euro’s so we shouldn’t expect miracles but we are definitely heading in the right direction!