Their primary objective remains the last 16 of Euro 2016 and Italy are moving towards it one step at a time with their feet firmly on the ground and their focus very much on the next game. Antonio Conte knows that victory over Sweden would secure the Azzurri’s passage to the knockout phase before the Ireland game having won their opening match against Belgium. “We put in a good performance against Belgium,” said the coach at a press conference shortly after arriving in Toulouse, “but we haven’t even got through to the last 16 yet which is the primary goal. So we’re keeping our feet on the ground, the lads are focused and determined, and we’re looking to approach the match as well as we can in order to earn the victory. We’re seeing a lot of close matches at these Euros, every game is tough and everyone is well prepared.”
Predictably, Conte did not reveal his starting eleven but he confirmed that there wouldn’t be massive upheavals: “There’s been time to recover. For me, it seems excessive to be speaking about fatigue seeing as we’ve been preparing to play this often. I’ll be weighing things up until tomorrow morning, thinking about what I’ve seen, looking at assessments and speaking to the lads. But I don’t think I’ll make big changes.”
Despite not impressing in their opening game, Sweden shouldn’t be underestimated and Zlatan Ibrahimovic remains one of the world’s finest players. “We’ll be playing a solid team” said Conte, “with a star like Ibrahimovic whom we’ll have to watch closely; he’s a player who can change the dynamic. And it’s not just him, there are other dangerous players and we’ll have to be careful not to play into their hands.”
Whilst Italy’s defence have the tricky task of keeping tabs on Ibra, Conte has some weapons of his own starting with Graziano Pellè who has been one of the most pleasant surprises of Euro 2016 so far. “He has a unique story”, said Conte, “because he had to go abroad to earn his place with the national side seeing as he’s played very little football in Italy. Playing in different contexts has made him more assured in all areas. He’s a fantastic striker and he’s got good physical attributes. I’m happy for him because his story shows that desire and sacrifice can take you to the top.”
Experience often accompanies humility and Gigi Buffon knows that in can be dangerous to start thinking too far ahead. “It was nice to start like that, even we probably weren’t expecting it,” admitted the captain, “but one of our strengths is that we know our limitations and we know what we need to do on the pitch. This is the protection against letting ourselves down in that second game which has caused us problems in recent tournaments.”
Problems could also be caused by Ibrahimovic who has been the bane of Italy in the past: “We’re very wary of him. He’s one of the few special players who can raise the level of anyone they play for. Sweden aren’t just Ibra because they have other great individuals but his talent, his strength, his conviction and his winning mentality just aren’t found in other players. He’ll be a big problem for me and our defence”. The hope is that the Italy rearguard will reaffirm the high standards shown in the Belgium match. “I always have a good relationship with my defensive colleagues”, said Buffon, “We’re a very solid unit and we’re in a good place, although we know that you can’t relax at this level.” One of the best players on the pitch in Lyon was without doubt Leonardo Bonucci who is becoming ever more authoritative in his role as the “director” at the back: “He’s happy on the ball, he knows how to start moves and he has the personality and the courage to play on the limit. He’s improved immensely over the years and he’s now a world-class player.”
After emphasising the value of Conte (“he’s brought us a mentality where the result is the logical outcome of sacrifice”), the big goalkeeper reminisced about this time a decade ago when he was crowned a world champion in Berlin: “Just like then, we’ve won our first game 2-0; just like then, the team spirit is building and developing and becoming even stronger both before the matches and as a consequence of them. It’s also true that there’s been a desire since day one at Coverciano to create unity and harmony because we believe in these factors, in these ingredients. And if we managed to achieve what we did in 2006, it was because of the strength and unity that you can only have when all 23 players and all the staff think in unison.”
Source: figc.it