Italy: The future of football or is time running out?

Italy, under new Chelsea boss Conte, entered the Euros in France labelled 'the worst Italian team in generations'. Their strikers consisted of Pelle, Eder, Zaza and Immobile, none of whom appeared as eye catching or as much of a threat as past goalscorers Totti, Baggio or Vieri. Their defence is ageing, the likes of Buffon, Chiellini and Barzagli were deemed past it and were expected to be out thwarted in their opening game against the Belgium 'golden generation'. However victories against Belgium, Sweden as well Euro Champions Spain showed just how underestimated the Italians were. Only a penalty shootout could halt their resilient and tactically exquisite style of play. What made the Italians so effective and even more promising for future tournaments despite lacking the star quality of Belgium, Spain and Germany to name a few?

3-5-2 

The 3-5-2 is a thing of legend in the English Premier League with almost every team sticking to a rough 4-2-3-1 shape or somewhat similar. However this classic Italian formation worked a treat under Conte given the hardworking and technically gifted wing backs at his disposal in addition to a handful of Juventus centre backs whose undeniable chemistry offered Italy the best defensive line in the tournament. The wing backs were constantly rotated with Florenzi, Darmian and Candreva all featuring at RWB whilst Giaccherini and De Sciligio occupied the left flank. The use of wing backs limits opposition wingers to great effect, this was most prominent against Belgium where Chelsea man Hazard failed to get into the game thanks to being tracked and hassled throughout. Similarly Nolito couldn't influence the game heavily thanks to Florenzi's defensive aptitude and constant individual pressing from each willing Italian. On the other hand wing backs provide a formidable attacking outlet, Giacherrini got a goal and assist to his name whilst playing on the left of an Italian midfield whereas Roma's Florenzi average 0.8 shots a game, impressive for a full back tasked with marking Hazard,Nolito and Ozil on occasions. Chelsea fans will be beaming at the prospect of such an efficient formation transforming their muddled team into title contenders once more. This is a perfect example of a plan, something which Hodgson has been criticised for lacking in a dismal England squad.

Juventus unison 

'There is no doubting this is not the rosiest period for Italian football' ~ Conte 

 Chiellini, Barzagli and Bonucci started all of Italy's decisive games in defence for Conte (Ogbonna featured against the Republic of Ireland when Italy had already topped the group). This Juventus cohesion meant Italy only conceded once when all three were playing, conceding a well built up goal from Germany in the Quarter Finals. The defence is rock solid, despite their age they possess a capable pace to deal with attackers however it's very rare that forwards get a chance to turn and run at the experienced men at the back. Italy were hard done by going out despite their defensive capabilities : Barzagli and Chiellini won an average of 2 aerial duels in the air with the latter making no fewer than 5 clearances a game. Furthermore their counterpart Bonucci had a goal, an assist and a pass accuracy of 83% to brag about. Buffon in net completes the Italian (Juventus) defence, the 38 year old made some important saves this tournament, most notably denying Gomez from just six yards out. Unfortunately this is most likely the Italian legend's last tournament as first team keeper since PSG's Sirigu is close on his heels. It's no surprised that Lukaku, Ibrahimovic and Muller all endured fairly disappointing goal scoring campaigns given the Italian wall in front of them.

One big one small 

Eder and Pelle form an essential partnership for the Italians and obtained 3 goals for their nation this tournament against Belgium, Sweden and Spain. Pelle is immense in the air given his tall stature whilst Eder is a willing runner off the ball who creates space and opportunity. In fact Pelle won 4 aerial duels on average each game, this unsurprising stat is not bettered by anyone else in the Italian squad by some margin. However Eder offers an exceptional touch and dribbling ability which was epitomised with a brilliant solo effort vs Sweden. The likes of Immobile and Zaza rarely got a look in, excluding a painful penalty from the latter. Unfortunately Pelle at 30 and Eder of 29 years of age don't have youth on their side and can most likely only muster one more tournament each, the 2018 World Cup, before an inevitable decline.

What next for Italy? 

The World Cup qualifiers commence in September, Italy are alongside Spain in an otherwise simple group featuring the likes of Israel and Albania. However since only top place automatically is assigned a place in Russia there will be a looming battle when Conte's men face their Spanish rivals. Italy had the 5th oldest squad at the Euros, including 9 players over 30, expect a change in faces over the coming qualifiers.