'It's Coming Rome': The Renaissance of Italian Football

Wow, what a Euros. What more could we have possibly asked for? Every single match was a nail-biter, even with some of the smaller national teams. Fans were back in the stadiums, there was chanting, jeering, whistling, a lot of high moments, some that we wish we never had to witness (glad Eriksen is doing ok), and last night, the champions were crowned. Italy came into this tournament as a potential winner but nobody seemed to truly rate them as a full-on contender. Yet, what we witnessed over the course of this month-long journey was the return to one of Europe's greatest teams. After that penalty shootout against England, it was very clear to me, and the rest of soccer media: Italy is back.

Italy's revival was not by accident. Instead, it was a careful, strategic approach to returning to glory. Italy hadn't won an international tournament since the 2006 World Cup, another match that is forever hallowed into the Italian footballing culture. They missed out on the 2018 World Cup after they failed to qualify, and questions arose whether they had the ability to mount any strong push on the international stage. Enter Roberto Mancini, a seasoned coach who managed Manchester City to a Premier League title in 2012, three Scudettos with Inter Milan, and a few domestic cups from England and Italy's competitions. He injected a new culture into this Italian squad, one that was based around embracing the idea of being a well-oiled unit. When you watched Mancini's Italy, you don't see players slacking off. They continue to press hard and stay alert, everyone tracks back on defense, they spring forward on the counter-attack. This team is well-coached, well-drilled, and well-managed. In international football, you can sense there are typically things dividing the dressing room. Spain was famous for having Ramos and Pique start together despite the two playing for rival club teams in Real Madrid and Barcelona. Italy was spared this sort of dilemma by having Giorgio Chiellini and Leonardo Bonucci, both Juventus players, at the back. They are the elder statesmen of the Italian team, 37 and 34 respectively, but their leadership could not have been more vital. It showed why in the final.

Mancini had embraced a hard truth about his team: they had no legitimate superstar. The closest to one might be Lorenzo Insigne, but even for all his skill, Insigne is never in conversations about being an elite player. Nor his partner at striker in Ciro Immobile, the top scorer in Serie A the past two seasons. However, they are getting older and their reliability was questioned many times even throughout this unprecedented run to the European Championship, and thus the youth injection was brought on. Federico Chiesa emerged as the next great Italian forward. Manuel Locatelli played like he was Andrea Pirlo in his prime. Domenico Berardi exploded when he either came on as a sub or rotated into the starting lineup. The talisman of all the youngsters: Gianluigi Donnarumma, the Roman statue in goal. When you watch the penalty shootout against England, you could see just how much of a difference Donnarumma was making. When he made those saves on Jadon Sancho and Bukayo Saka to seal Italy's victory, it was like watching Buffon before him. Mancini found the right balance of veteran and youth talent, and the way they meshed together was incredible. 

Some might say Italy played too defensively, as they didn't all rush forward when the attack was on. However, when you see the Bonucci goal scored off the corner, it becomes clear how they play. Everyone has a job, and when properly executed, the results come. Sure it wasn't pretty; in fact, you could've been bored watching this final play out. But to win a trophy against an extremely talented England team in London, that does not happen because of a fluke. It's because everything worked out the way it was supposed to. Bonucci and Chiellini were stout in defense, Chiesa's finishing in the final third was put on display, Marco Veratti and Jorginho conducted the game in midfield, and Donnarumma kept out the goal attempts that mattered the most. To think, this same team was struggling mightily before Mancini took over. Since then, Italy hasn't been defeated in 34 matches and now with a trophy to boot. Italian football is once again at the top of its game.

The Italian football renaissance is occurring, and considering how guys like Chiesa and Berardi are still only in their early 20s, the future is incredibly bright. It will take a lot more preparation to defend the Euro title in 2024, but now Italy has a chance to make some noise at the World Cup next December.