The Azzurri got off to about the worst possible start in their qualification campaign. Giancarlo Rinaldi examines whether a change of coach can really address all the issues they face.

Maybe Francesco Acerbi knew better than the rest of us. His decision not to join his countrymen cast a cloud over the start of their efforts to make it to the World Cup in the USA, Mexico and Canada next year. Their performances in Oslo suggested a lot of those who did answer Luciano Spalletti’s call might have wished they had stayed at home also.

It was a display so desperate that the Italian Federation felt the only option was to dispense with the former Roma and Napoli boss. In the process, they plunged the national team into chaos and raised major questions about its ability to get to that expanded competition in 2026.

How Spalletti failed as Italy coach
The first issue that springs to mind has been dealt with – at least in some regards. If the coach from Certaldo was the problem, then he was no longer a concern after the final whistle blew on Monday night’s pretty grim clash with Moldova. There were some moments of good football during his reign, and decent results, but overall, his team failed to scale the heights that many of his club sides had managed. If this was the man charged with carrying on the progress enjoyed under Roberto Mancini, then it was definitely mission unaccomplished.

Many felt he should have been shown the door after a disappointing defence of their European crown, when they rolled over to the Swiss in the last 16, and they will certainly feel vindicated now. That team looked jaded and in need of reinvention but, to be fair to the departing tactician, he did seem to make some effort in that regard. The highest his stock would rise was surely with the two Nations League away wins over France and Belgium. It looked like he might have rediscovered the Azzurri’s mojo, but that unravelled pretty quickly with back-to-back home defeats by France and Germany ahead of the capitulation to Norway in their opening World Cup group game. A 2-0 win over Moldova was too little, too late and another disjointed affair.

The alarm bells, in truth, were sounding before a ball was kicked in the qualifiers. Although Italy had scrambled back to a 3-3 draw in their away clash with Germany, that masked a horrendous first-half performance in which they could have been much further behind. The concern about their ability to withstand any kind of attacking force had already been laid bare and was confirmed against a Norwegian side which had an array of options with which to unlock an undeniably makeshift defence.

Spalletti has to carry the can for his selections, the tactical set-up and how long it took him to make any significant changes when it was clear the game was going against him. He cut a forlorn figure on the sidelines and his body language was not the kind to inspire any of his players to believe they could turn things around. His call-ups, too, seemed to lack any real consistent, clear vision of how he wanted to play and the way he wanted to see his team progress. The Acerbi fiasco now seems like a last grasp for a lifebelt from a man who could see disaster coming.

The way his departure was handled, however, has been truly shambolic. To leave him in charge against Moldova when he had already been dismissed was farcical. What followed was even more comical as the scramble for a replacement began. Initially, it looked like Claudio Ranieri was the man, but the Tinkerman appears to have decided that he had no more managerial miracles up his sleeve. The names of Stefano Pioli, Roberto Mancini, Rino Gattuso, Daniele De Rossi and Fabio Cannavaro have swirled around since then. It is hard to escape the feeling that the powers that be decided to axe Spalletti without having a clue what they wanted to do next. That is not a good look for a nation that aspires to be one of the major forces in the global game.

Closer analysis of Spalletti’s demise suggests that he was not the only issue facing La Nazionale. Looking at the starting line-up for the clash at the Ullevaal Stadion, it was difficult to escape the feeling that anyone would struggle to make up a team of world beaters out of the elements at his disposal. Hit by a string of call-offs and injuries, the cast list was hardly the kind to strike fear into Scandinavian hearts. They surrendered so meekly it was hard to believe that they represented a nation with four World Cup stars on their chests.

Issues in Italy’s squad selection
It feels like the other top teams in international football all have a sprinkling of superstars that the Azzurri no longer enjoy. Gigio Donnarumma, perhaps, could lay claim to a place in the very upper reaches of the game but who else could truly rub shoulders with the best? There are plenty of good players but the days of Paolo Maldini, Francesco Totti or Roberto Baggio seem long gone. Even the more fringe players from yesteryear might shine in the current climes.

Look deeper, though, and you will see that at youth level the Italian teams still manage to hold their own. That prompts bigger questions about why these players rarely make the transition to regular starting spots in Serie A. There needs to be a wider look at what can be done to ensure they get enough game time to flourish, otherwise we will be reflecting on whatever happened to the likes of Simone Pafundi or Francesco Camarda in the years to come. Spalletti surely could have been braver in his use of younger players but it was undeniable that there often wasn’t a lot of choice at his disposal.

Gravina’s responsibility
Which brings us, of course, to the final element of the jigsaw – the Italian football federation. Plenty of fingers have been pointed at its president Gabriele Gravina as just as responsible for this debacle as any player or coach. Yes, he was in charge of the Euro 2020 triumph but how long can he cling on to that glory? Since then Italy have failed to qualify for a World Cup from a group that included Switzerland, Northern Ireland, Bulgaria and Lithuania and missed out in a play-off with North Macedonia. They then delivered a drab set of matches at Euro 2024 before seriously compromising their chances of another World Cup before it started. If that doesn’t call for radical reform of the system then what does?

The trouble, of course, is getting anyone to look at the bigger picture and find innovative ways to develop young talent and put Italy back at the top of the global game. Those of us a bit longer in the tooth can remember when La Nazionale was a mainstay of the later stages of almost every competition it entered. That tradition is in serious danger of being lost for a whole generation of Azzurri fans.

If that means a shake-up of the federation and its structures, that would surely be no bad thing. Regardless of who takes over in the end, planning for longer-term success must start immediately. Italy used to be good at nurturing its talent, both on the field and in coaching, and working towards being ready for major competitions. It sometimes meant sacrificing a Euros in order to be prepared for a World Cup but it felt like there was a method in the way they were working. Nowadays, it can often feel like they lurch from one crisis to another with very little in the way of considered thought along the way.

The losers, of course, are the supporters. There are millions of people in Italy and many more overseas who like nothing more than daubing their faces in green, white and red and putting on the Azzurri shirt with pride to watch their national team in action. Lately, it has been more of an embarrassment than any pleasure for them to tune in from across the planet – and that has to change soon.

This is a country that still lives and breathes football and deserves better than it has had to endure of late. Everyone – the coaches, the players and the officials – has a part to play in ensuring that they get a World Cup to enjoy next summer. Things have got off to a bad start but they are not entirely compromised. The pressure is on, though, to somehow win their group or clamber through the play-off system to make sure that Il Canto degli Italiani is heard at international football’s biggest tournament for the first time in 12 years next summer.

Football-italia.net