2026 FIFA World Cup thread [R]

Hey @falvo, what's going on with Italy? Are they really going to miss 3 World Cups in a row?

 

They suck.

Too many foreigners in the Serie A and not enough Italian players can ever develop.

They fired their coach Spalletti after the last game against Moldova even though they won.

Now they are saying they want to go with Rino Gattuso.

Not so sure if that would be a good move.

It will be sad if Italy misses out on a third consecutive World Cup tournament.

 

Glad Gennaro Gattuso is no longer coaching Hajduk Split where he wasn't playing young American prospect Rokas Pukstas... The vaunted Croatian league to the Italian national team so would this be a hire based on coaching ability or because he's a former Italian player and not some dirty foreigner ruining Serie A a first division league where they play on track fields? In any case they can have him, they just about deserve each other...

 

Italy has won a World Cup more recently than the Quakes have won a MLS Cup, so I’m not gonna worry about them too much.

When’s the last time Georgia won the Asian Cup? Seems like eons.

 

Maybe if there were more talented Italian prospects the teams wouldn't need to import so many foreigners? Chicken and the egg? Does Serie A have any minimum number of domestic players requirement or max number of foreign players?

 

Italy’s current generation is bad enough, now they have Burnley benchwarmer Luca Koleosho starting for their U21s. I feel bad for Italians. https://t.co/WacofbzBJQ

— American Ultras Talk (@usmntaut) June 11, 2025

 

I think the only limit to foreigners is for those with non-EU citizenship but other than that, there is none.

I just heard an interview yesterday on Italian Radio that Italy employs 68% foreign players and players never get a chance to develop.

There are many prospects but they hit a brick wall when getting ready to make the step from the youth teams to the pro side.

Coaches are reluctant and unwilling to give younger players a shot and would rather sign a foreign Brazilian, Argentine with or without an EU passport as they have more experience.

Napoli just signed a 34 year old Kevin De Bruyne so I don't see much youth movement there for the Italian scudetto winner.

De Bruyne signs with Serie A champion Napoli

This isn't uncommon for Italian clubs.

They will have never used a 17-year-old Lamine Yamal and he would most likely still be militating on a bench, waiting to get ready, on the club primavera youth team or even in a lower division.

Below is Fabio Capello’s take.



Capello though also had the same problem when he was in charge of England and complained at the lack of quality English players in the EPL.

 

If "letting the Italian players develop" was a promising strategy you'd think at least one team would try it? It could be a Money Ball type of "market inefficiency" to exploit - where you could develop a team for relatively cheap plus, you'd have the "motherland club" sort of domestic appeal that a team like Chivas has.

I think the problem here is less that they'd let a 17-year old Lamine Yamal sit on the bench than it is that there isn't a 17-year old Italian Lamine Yamal.

 

Lamine Yamal is an exceptional, great player but the way Italy grooms their players, they don't have any equivalent to him and never really did either.

Even back in the day of Baggio, Zola, Delpiero and Totti, very few made a impact from ages 17-20.

They did come into their own at around 20-23 but hardly ever in their teens.

Also, it's cheaper to go out and buy a foreign, more experienced Gk, defender, mid or forward than it is to be patient, sit around waiting for a young player to develop.

That is just the mentality coaches have.

This coupled with the fact that hardly anyone, players, coaches, club presidents/owners and fans alike can care less about the national team.

They complain about the lack of talent every Euro or WC tournament cycle but no one does anything about it and they all go right back to doing the same thing as always.

 

Then maybe the problem is their youth nats program and youth development in general in Italy.

 

No the problem is too many foreigners playing in the Serie A with hardly any Italian players playing on top teams.

Another thing is, not focusing on the Italian characteristics.

Scoring goals was always a problem but the great Italian GK’s and defenders are no longer developed.

There used to be maybe 7-10 GK’s you could choose and maybe 20-30 defenders.

There are no more GK’s like Zoff, Peruzzi, Pagliuca and Buffon.

The great Italian defenders like Scirea, Gentile, Cannavaro, Nesta, Baresi, Maldini, Bonucci or even Chiellini no longer exist and I see no one on the horizon.

 

Why can't quality Italian players get playing time in MLS?

 

Again, chicken and the egg, right? If there were really promising Italian youth players, I would imagine they'd get more of a chance to play in Serie A.

 

No they don't get any chance to shine because coaches won't play younger players.

 

Giovinco was one of the all-time great MLS players. Toronto decided to go back to mine that same vein, came back with Insigne and Bernadeschi, and it's been a pretty unqualified failure. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

 

But what if those younger players were a lot better? Then they'd likely get more of a chance. See, chicken and the egg.

 

There was a 2-3 man foreign player limit when those guys started out and clubs were forced to utilize domestic players.

 

Insigne and Bernadeschi were older guys, though, right? How about the youngsters?

 

Don't know their player pool, but if they have some promise but getting frozen out in Serie A, as falvo says, it could be something for MLS teams to look at. Who's the last Italian player the Quakes had? Can't think of any offhand. I'm probably forgetting someone...

 

Insigne was starting at Napoli but Bernadeschi was an off and on starter at Juve.

Giovinco was mostly a reserve at Juventus.

 

Proving once again that the foreign league to MLS predictor equation is highly non-linear. The teams that can figure out what it might be are the ones that will be most successful.

 

Young Americans can go to a dozen different leagues across the ocean in Europe, why can't young Italians (who have Euro passports) go play in other leagues, why are they limited to Serie A... hell not even all of it but the big clubs like Milan and Juve that are obviously going to prioritize winning now over developing prospects regardless of their nationality?