Prandelli’s Blueprint – Notes on the new Italy

You do remember Italy at World Cup 2010 right? Hopeless. David Swan reports on the newly evolving Azzurri:

There is nothing Italy loves more than being written off, ignored, and forgotten. They have dropped out of the top 10 of the (admittedly nonsensical) FIFA rankings, and seemingly out of people’s minds as potential Euro 2012 winners (most bookmakers have them as sixth favourites to win it). But coach Cesare Prandelli will not mind, and nor will the players – they know there is something promising building under the radar.

The past couple of games – a qualifier against Slovenia, won 1-0, and a 2-0 friendly win over Ukraine are confirmation that Prandelli is taking Italy in the right direction. After the 2010 World Cup, he was left with the task of refreshing and rejuvenating a squad that had far too many players the wrong side of 30 kept on by Marcello Lippi, and too many players not of the required standard.

He has actually gone about that task relatively well. The talent was already there for Italy, it just required a coach willing to show a bit more trust in them, rather than persisting with players like Vincenzo Iaquinta, Mauro Camoranesi and Gianluca Zambrotta. With guys such as those now jettisoned, the likes of Giuseppe Rossi and Sebastian Giovinco are being given the much-needed game time at international level.

But perhaps the biggest change Prandelli is currently making to the Azzurri is the style of football. He wants to get rid of the slow, methodical style that characterised previous coaches, and introduce a quicker, one-touch passing game akin to Spain, who are seemingly the reference point for every international team out there. He made this quite clear with his midfield selection against Slovenia – not a single ‘pure’ defensive midfield player in there, just three individuals who are all good on the ball in Alberto Aquilani, Thiago Motta and Riccardo Montolivo.

Obviously that ideal is all well and good against modest opposition like Slovenia, and the former Fiorentina tactician knows that against good teams, and in a tournament situation, a defensive figure like Daniele De Rossi will have to come in. He was left out of the squad for the two games due to breaching the code of ethics implemented by the FIGC, but he will surely waltz back into the side upon his return. Andrea Pirlo, not called up due to injury, will probably return too, so it gives the coach a welcome headache as to which player to leave out.

Wing it

Prandelli is also the first Italy coach in four years to realise that the national team cannot play 4-3-3, and to this end has changed the primary formation utilised by the la Nazionale. Roberto Donadoni implemented the 4-3-3 full-time when he took over from Lippi after the 2006 triumph, despite the fact it was clear to many that it did not work all that often. Lippi made the mistake of continuing to play with width upon his second stab at the job. Trying to use width meant that squads were filled with mediocre players, such as Simone Pepe, but whose inclusion was necessary because they were one of the few Italians capable of playing out wide.

The marked lack of success did not stop coach Cesare trying it for himself – he did after all use it for a lengthy period when he was at Fiorentina – but he officially dumped it for the time being before the friendly with Germany in February, announcing that there are not enough Italian wingers, which has been the case for at least a decade now. The result is a 4-3-1-2 formation that suits the plethora of talent available in central midfield (another thing that has been apparent for a long time), and one in which the players look comfortable.

The bone of contention surrounds who fills the trequartista role behind the strikers. Stefano Mauri has been the guy handed the position on the most regular basis, but his offensive qualities are incredibly limited, and he has produced a string of poor performances going forward. Aquilani started there against Ukraine but struggled to impose himself on the game (not helped by the midfield players selected for this match). The other option at the moment is a talented Giovinco – who set-up Alessandro Matri’s goal against Ukraine with a superb backheel – but despite his qualities going forward there are question marks over his abilities without the ball, although Prandelli was impressed with his efforts on Tuesday evening.

Mauri seems to be the preferred choice right now for his defensive coverage out of possession, but his quality with the ball appears to be hindering the team at times. Against good opposition he is unlikely to have enough to aid the breaking down of a defence, and is not really the ideal man to make full use of the new quick-passing game plan starting to sprout from the midfield behind him.

Fortunately, Prandelli has just over a year to solve this issue, and find his best combination in attack. Such is the wealth of talent available to him in this area that he can afford to leave someone as brilliant as Mario Balotelli (another to breach the code of ethics) out of the squad altogether and still not have room for Giuseppe Rossi in his first XI, as was the case against Slovenia.

Sixth favourites for Euro 2012 will suit Italy just fine.

David Swan is Just Football’s Italian football correspondent. Follow him on Twitter @DavidlSwan

(photo credit: bupowski on Flickr)

Cesare Prandelli, Euro 2012, Italy