“Scamacca is an excellent center forward but also a shy boy. If they load him with responsibility as they are doing, he risks exploding.”
The European alarm starts from a prince of the bench, from a coach who made the history of modern football: Arrigo Sacchi. European and world champion with the Milan of the Dutch aces (Gullit, Rijkard and Van Basten), vice world champion at USA ’94 with the national team of Baggio and Baresi, Mister Intensity rejects individualism in the name of collective football, where he is score (i.e. the game) that makes the orchestra sound good.
“No one, not even the greatest, can win a title alone. To achieve success, everyone’s contribution is needed. This is why I warn Scamacca and those who appeal to him as the tutelary deity of the Azzurri’s destinies. Think of my Milan. Van Basten was a recognized champion but one year we won the championship and he only played three games due to injury. And in a Champions Cup Gullit played one match in nine and showed that he could ignore his aces.”
Scudetto-winning Napoli enchanted with their play. Will Spalletti be able to apply his strategies to the national team too?
“It won’t be easy. He is a very good coach but he starts with a handicap. Defensiveness and individualism have always undermined the quality of our football. Valcareggi won in ’68 with a closed double defense and relying on Riva’s prowess. Italy has never had a real school, it has always lived on cunning, cunning and subterfuge, as is our character. Spain has a precise game approach based on dribbling, France has 15 federal technical centers and the results can be seen let’s improvise, as esteemed coaches such as Conte and Mancini have done more or less brilliantly.”
So look with concern at the upcoming European Championship…
“Spalletti won a championship with eleven little-known players at European level and without the four players of the highest quality, sacrificed to the market. His Napoli was a united group, capable of dominating the game. In the national team Luciano must choose the best and give a to the team with ten days. Here lies the problem.”
What recipe do you suggest to the coach?
“Choose good players, who are also reliable people, who know how to be humble and bring out all their physical and mental resources. High aggression and pressing are only achieved if the whole team collaborates and moves as a single body.”
The exclusions of Locatelli and Politano and the call-up of Fagioli, fresh from his betting disqualification, were surprising…
“I believe that Spalletti has not only adopted quality criteria in his choices. His is a global evaluation, which affects the motivations and reliability of the men who will follow him in the adventure in Germany.”
Do you admire strategic coaches, do you include Spalletti among them?
“Of course, he is rightfully part of it. For some seasons the number of technical strategists has been growing (Gasperini, Motta, Sarri, De Zerbi, Italiano) to the detriment of tacticians. The former have a project and know how to pursue it, the latter wait for the opponent’s mistake and they adjust accordingly. Italy has always prevailed. It is no coincidence that Juve has won two Champions Cups in sixty years and my Milan have brought home two in three years. “.
But Herrera’s Inter, known for its catenaccio, also won twice and came close to a third triumph…
“Inter was a team with a strong playing style and great technical level (Corso, Mazzola, Suarez). But after a defeat against Rocco’s Catenacciaro Padova, Gianni Brera and his defensive allies forced the Magician to change direction. And he, as a great football navigator, adapted.”
The European Championships have often disappointed the expectations of Italian fans. You too, in ’96, were excluded from the Czech Republic, when you adopted such a massive turnover that it distorted the team’s nature…
“I came from the USA ’94 experience. We finished that World Cup with empty batteries and a thousand ailments. I wanted to preserve the team in view of the second phase. What do you want me to tell you? Errare humanum est!”.
