Just a few minutes after the final whistle in Italy’s match against Spain, whilst his players were still celebrating in the changing rooms, Antonio Conte was already thinking about Germany: “We put in a great display but against Germany we’ll need an absolutely titanic performance,” the Italy coach warned, “We’re playing the best side in the world, at the moment they’re better than Spain. They have everything a good team needs: skill, talent, physicality and organisation. We’ll look to play our aces at the opportune moments thanks to our knowledge of our opponents’ strengths and weaknesses as well as our own. A month ago, this wouldn’t have been a contest. Now we’re deservedly playing them in the quarter-finals. We’re ready to face the challenge and we’ll have to stay strong as we look to succeed with the deck stacked in their favour. But no-one is ever beaten before the match starts.”
The Italy head coach also recalled the Azzurri’s journey to get to this point which has been full of challenges and started with little fanfare: “We started without much expectation surrounding the team but everyone knows us now, even abroad. It’s not the most talented era for Italian football but – thanks to hard work, organisation, and 23 great lads who play for the team and put their bodies on the line – we’re trying to overcome challenges that once seemed insurmountable. Now we have to do something extraordinary. We train to experience these moments; these are the games that can make you feel great.” After explaining that the long list of players on a yellow card is the least of the team’s worries, Conte spoke about the friendly defeat against Germany in Munich in March: “It will motivate us even more to see if the gap has widened or not since that match.”
Inevitably, the coach was asked about De Rossi who returned to take part in one half of today’s training session after his injury against Spain: “Daniele’s in a passable condition,” Conte said, “but we won’t confirm anything more. You have to be 120% in these matches because they’re very physical and intense so you don’t just have to be fit, you have to very fit. I’ve a lot of faith in the squad as I’ve always shown. I’m happy with my starting options as well as with potential substitutes.”
Gigi Buffon was alongside Conte in the media room. The goalkeeper will pick up his 161st cap tomorrow. The only survivor from the 2006 World Cup semi-final, the Azzurri captain reminisced about the last edition of the Euros when Italy flew into the final with a 2-1 win over their Teutonic rivals: “The build-up to this match has lots in common with the 2012 semi-final. We were also underdogs back then and we had to come up with something special to get to the final. Now, the odds are probably even longer, they’re the world champions and they have lots of consistency in their game. We’re still looking for that consistency and, in part, we’ve found it.”
“We’ve been good up until now,” added Buffon, “and tomorrow we’ll have to try to be even better. There’s no other solution than trying to improve even more if we’re going to keep dreaming. We all know it’ll be hard. It’ll be a match where the struggle, the sweat and the mental and physical effort will take us to the edge, but we know this and it’s important to confront the match and not be surprised.”
Italy vs. Germany will also be a match within a match against Neuer. Both men have yet to concede a goal in this tournament and the destiny of both teams is literally in their hands: “I said today that Neuer is better than me because this doesn’t affect or undermine my ability. It would be offensive to compare Manuel with a 38-year-old goalkeeper. In the last few years, he has shown that he’s a fantastic goalkeeper in all areas. I know who I was and I know who I am now.”
Photo: figc.it