Al Gabiru, making 2 Euro finals in the last 4, winning one of them, is opposite of bad. What has the team you supporting done?
I don’t know if you guys listened to that interview I posted, but that Serie D coach Pochesci had a nice bit to say about Camarda. His main point is how in Italy we’ve completely lost the courage to play young players. In the past it wasn’t like this. Maldini and Totti were thrown in at young ages and given chances. He was then challenged by the other journalists saying thing like “Yeah he scores but it’s in primavera” or “No you can’t compare to Totti. Totti was a legend” And he throws it back at them saying that this mentality is the problem.
It's clear that Italy are their own worst enemy. I also saw that story about a potential return of Ciro Immobile. They will bury their players in the lower leagues at the most critical time of development to their own detriment. As for Buffon not wanting Mancini. Agree with the comment of not knowing what to believe as a journalist could be throwing these things out there. Written that I kinda do believe the purported story of Gravina asking the leadership group of the team who they want as CT. Believe me if they wanted Mancio back in they would have got him. Gravina would have had to just swallow any pride at how messy that divorce was. If the players haven't their guy (again, not sure if this is the case), Buffon has his choice, then it really is up to the players now to suck it up and grow a pair.
100% and we do this all the time with how we then overate young players from other nations as if they are just aliens. When you look at a lot of the young players that are brand names from France Portugal Spain between 18-22 most of them don't have out of this world stats. For some reason someone like Orsolini is not recognized until he is 27 when he has been scoring at least 8 goals a season since he was 19 at Ascoli. Players like Nico Williams and most of the Portuguese wingers people hype up score 5-7 goals a year even in their early 20s and yet somehow they are magic while our guys are not good enough for the big clubs or the national team. Like what more would a Fazzini have to do to get an opportunity? Is he really statistically not anywhere close to a Dani Olmo? So much of it is perception. The fact that our clubs can buy a 24 year olds that has experience in the balkans or ligue 1 or wherever means they don't have to take a chance on a young player. In the 80s and 90s when it was majority Italians you had far more mediocre players playing so a Mancini or Totti at 16 showed quality the other players did not have. Now Camarda has to compete with an Abraham and Jovic because they flopped at Real Madrid and Chelsea and while they can't lace Camrdas boots skill wise they are in their mid 20s are physically capable and experienced enough to be mediocre and a safe option for a manager.
This is the issue if we were just shit hey what can you do we would just have to accept this but all the evidence shows there is talent. All the ideas of social media video games birth rates etc etc are just excuses to not change anything. The players exist. Even someone like Barella only developed because he is Sardinian and Cagliari were in a weak period so they played him a lot. If Inter owned him as a youth he would have not been brought back until he was 25 and then 25-30 you have no experience. There are simply no spots available in Italian football for these players. Genuinely if all these players just went to the Scottish league as soon as they turned 17 we'd be better off. Serie A has maintained as a quality league despite a drop off from the 90s/2000s but Serie B is not strong enough to develop players despite it being 86% Italian and even then the amount of journeymen that are trusted over young talent in Serie B is a problem.
Generally speaking I would avoid engaging in discussion with anyone who spends time in threads still debating Maradonna over Pele - Who was better? It's time to move on.
Yeah he played so much that it's almost wild that he did not play for Italy until euro 2000 but we had so many options with Baggio Del Piero Zola and then Cassano starts playing in 1999. This is the thing you feed off these players for so long. By Euro 2012 you are still ok for number 10 because someone played Cassano in 1999. We've had bad luck with Balotelli Chiesa Zaniolo Scamacca Giuseppe Rossi in the last 10 years all players that were ruined by injuries that were supposed to be stars but this happens when you have an abundance of players you're covered as its been we are fragile for those attacker and game changers a few get derailed and then there is no one. Even Del Piero was brought in to replace Baggio at Juve at 20 years old and it's not like he scored 27 goals a year. He scored between 5 and 8 in his first 4 seasons with Juve in Serie A but there was not such a focus on stats then. The idea that you need to score all the time to be good is absurd and a by product of the Messi Ronaldo era which is how you get players like Mbbape only thinking about goals and why PSG are better without him. Now people act like you're a flop if you don't score 15 goals as a winger/forward. Slowly I think this is changing and we are getting back to praising players for their overall play.
When Zoff gave Totti his debut, he was by no means one of the top guys in Serie A. But he had the courage to throw him in there
Yeah I heard the interview. Pochesci made great points. Of course they should throw the younger players in but in the last 10-15 years or more, coaches and presidents are reluctant to playing them on the fear of losing.
Here is another problem that Italy has? who are the three top players. Please don’t tell me it’s Donnarumma? who is the best Italian player? Italy doesn’t ask this question anymore. Is it Barella? Bostoni? Tonali? Chiesa has not played in a while! There are some Italian who had good moments with Italy, but they couldn’t fulfill their full potential. Does Italy have a solid penalty taker or a free kick expert or the corner kicks?
Rigorista: Retegui and Jack take their fair share. They would be mine in this order. But you raise a good point, not briming with players that are designated PK takers on their clubs. Even going back to Euro 2021, the likes of Jorginho, Insigne, Berardi took them for their clubs. Bernardeschi and Bonucci weren't usually on PK duty for clubs but they took the odd one. Locatelli will step up but he has mixed results. Gigio is good for 1 Save but could Italy convert 4 or 5 in a PK Shootout?
https://www.bigsoccer.com/threads/transfer-news-and-rumours-involving-italian-players.2135510/ Created this thread to track transfers of Italian players
The best Italian players are Bastoni, Barella, Tonali, and Dimarco (only when in form). We have a few solid penalty kick takers. Retegui is our #1. Orsolini is great at them too. If Grifo and Berardi come back to the team, they are elite specialist. Grifo is also amazing at corner kicks and free kicks, I really hope he returns to the team. Jack is good at hitting them as well, and so is Dimarco. If they don't play, my guess is Tonali on the left and Orsolini on the right.
Inter desperately need to replace Acerbi and Mkhitaryan. As for Seba, I thought he was good. Ate a spectacular goal but he doesn’t look out of place
I'm all for Inter potentially having a rough patch ahead but you would think they would use this worthless tournament to integrate new players. Seba's inclusion for this tournament was decided months ago no reason other players from the Primavera or that they have out on loan shouldn't be here.
Inter are really stuck here. On one hand the players are burnt and need time off, on the other hand they need that CWC money.
Hey Guys, what do you think of Gattuso trying a formation like this: 4-3-3 -DiMarco-Retegui-Chiesa- -Frattesi-Tonali-Barella- -Udogie / Spinazzola-Bastoni-Calafiori-Di Lorenzo- -Donnarumma- First of all, if we are going to play a 4-3-3, we CANNOT play DiMarco as LB. He is more attacking of a player. Second of all, we lack quality in attack, and I feel like moving DiMarco as an LW could really be a very suitable option. I think he could do exceptionally well in that position. Chiesa can be RW when healthy. If not healthy, maybe try Cambiaso there? Also what are all your thoughts regarding Ricci? I haven't seen him play much, but considering he plays for Torino, makes me feel like he is not good enough to be a starter. Tonali seems like a good playmaker and maybe play him as a regista (kind of like Jorginho in the past), and Barella and Frattesi as CMs box-to-box midfielders. I think Frattesi might be a better player than we think; especially after I just read recent rumors about a rift between him and Inzaghi and wonder if that has interfered with him being a starter for Inter. I also feel like considering the players we have, another option would be to play a 4-4-1-1 kind of like Lippi's 2006 Italy: (Maybe this could work against superior teams to us like Spain, France, etc) -Chiesa / Retegui- -Frattesi- -DiMarco-Tonali-Barella-Cambiaso- -Udogie / Spinazzola-Bastoni-Calafiori-Di Lorenzo- -Donnarumma-
I have thought that Di Marco in a 4231 could work more as a LM than a LWF. -----------------------------Kean Di Marco----------------Tonali------------Orsolini -------------------Ricci-------------Barella Calafiori------Bastoni-----Leoni------Cambiaso
Is Ricci proven? I truly feel that Ricci, and Orsolini aren't good enough to be starters. Kean perhaps. I feel like Kean is a bit like Balotelli with a lot of potential but has other problems. I have no doubts he should go, but just not sure whether a starter or bench player.