After his long injury, Insigne seems to be back to his old self. Manager Sarri found the right position for him on the pitch, and that is paying dividends: “I feel good in a 4-3-3 formation, but no matter what system I play in, the most important thing for me is to give 100 percent. I always try to enjoy myself on the pitch, and I hope I can help Italy if manager Conte needs me.”
Insigne feels no need to make any comparison with the player he considers to be the best ever: “Please let’s not talk about Maradona, he was one of a kind. If I will ever wear Napoli’s number ten, it will be a responsibility and very emotional for sure. I am ok with the number 24 for now, number ten can remain in a drawer for a while…”
One of Insigne’s main fans is in team and is his roommate Fabio Quagliarella. “We know each other from our time at Napoli,” he said. “Lorenzo is a cheerful bloke and can cope with pressure very well. It won’t be easy for us against Azerbaijan, we will have to fight hard, but we will try to secure qualification against them.”
The Torino forward has already scored four Serie A goals this season and is now enjoying a much-deserved call up: “I am proud to be here, I am enthusiastic and I know what the boss expects from me. He was my manager at Juventus for three years, which is a slight advantage for me. We have lots of technically gifted forwards here – Pellé and Zaza are physically very strong too, while Eder, Candreva, El Shaarawy and Florenzi are great wingers.”
The squad
Goalkeepers: Gianluigi Buffon (Juventus), Daniele Padelli (Torino), Salvatore Sirigu (Paris Saint Germain);
Defenders: Luca Antonelli (Milan), Davide Astori (Fiorentina), Andrea Barzagli (Juventus), Leonardo Bonucci (Juventus), Giorgio Chiellini (Juventus), Matteo Darmian (Manchester United), Mattia De Sciglio (Milan), Alessandro Florenzi (Roma), Andrea Ranocchia (Inter), Davide Santon (Inter);
Midfielders: Andrea Bertolacci (Milan), Riccardo Montolivo (Milan), Marco Parolo (Lazio), Andrea Pirlo (New York City), Roberto Soriano (Sampdoria), Marco Verratti (Paris Saint Germain);
Forwards: Domenico Berardi (Sassuolo), Antonio Candreva (Lazio), Eder (Sampdoria),Stephan El Shaarawy (Monaco), Sebastian Giovinco (Toronto), Lorenzo Insigne (Napoli), Graziano Pellé (Southampton), Fabio Quagliarella (Torino), Simone Zaza (Juventus).
Staff: Manager: Antonio Conte; Team Manager: Gabriele Oriali; Secretary: Mauro Vladovich; Assistant Managers: Angelo Alessio, Massimo Carrera, Gianluca Spinelli, Gianluca Conte and Mauro Sandreani; Fitness coaches: Costantino Coratti and Paolo Bertelli; Doctors: Enrico Castellacci and Luca Gatteschi; Physios: Aldo Esposito, Alessandro Donato, Takahiro Yamamoto, Emanuele Randelli and Pasquale Raia.
Schedule
Tuesday, 6th October
10:00 CET – Training session (behind closed doors)
13:30 CET – Press conference (players)
16:30 CET – Training session (open to the press for the first 20 mins)
Wednesday, 7th October
10:00 CET – Training session (behind closed doors)
13:30 CET – Press conference (players)
16:30 CET – Training session (open to the press for the first 20 mins)
Thursday, 8th October
10:00 CET – Training session (behind closed doors)
14:30 CET – Transfer to Pisa airport
16:00 CET – Charter flight from Pisa to Baku
23:20 l.t. (20:20 CET) – Arrival in Baku and transfer to Hilton Baku Hotel
Friday, 9th October
11:30 l.t. (08.30 CET) – Training session (behind closed doors)
20:30 l.t. (17:30 CET) – Training session at the Olympic Stadium in Baku (open to the press for 15 mins) – Press conference to follow (head coach and one player)
Saturday, 10th October
21:00 l.t. (18:00 CET) – Match AZERBAJIAN vs. ITALY
A press conference and transfer to Baku airport will follow
02:30 l.t. (23:30 CET) – Charter flight from Baku to Rome
Sunday, 11th October
04:20 CET – Arrival in Rome and transfer to Parco dei Principi Hotel
15:30 CET – Press conference at the press room of the FIGC headquarters (players)
17:30 CET – Training session at the Stadio Olimpico (behind closed doors)
Monday, 12th October
17:15 CET – Training session at the Stadio Olimpico (open to the press for the first 15 mins)
Press conference tofollow (head coach and one player)
Tuesday, 13th October
20:45 CET – Match ITALY vs. NORWAY
Press conference to follow
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