Azzurrini victorious in Ireland

Romagnoli then put the Azzurrini comfortably ahead, also getting his first goal for the U21s as he met Barreca’s cross in the 58th minute. This was the goal that confirmed the Azzurrini’s superiority and made more room on the pitch as Ireland tried to close the gap. In the 64th minute, Romagnoli hit the post with his effort and the result was Lenihan putting the ball into his own net, making it 4-1.   “We started the game well but suffered a bit from the aggressive play of the Republic of Ireland. We did, however, do well to react. It was not one of our best games but we can be satisfied with the result. We have earned the three points and we are now front-runners in the group,” said Luigi Di Biagio. The squad
Goalkeepers:
Alessio Cragno (Virtus Lanciano), Gianluigi Donnarumma (AC Milan), Simone Scuffet (Como);
Defenders: Antonio Barreca (Cagliari), Davide Calabria (AC Milan), Mattia Caldara (Cesena), Andrea Conti (Atalanta), Alex Ferrari (Bologna), Adam Masina (Bologna), Alessio Romagnoli (AC Milan);
Midfielders: Marco Benassi (Torino), Danilo Cataldi (Lazio), Alberto Grassi (Napoli), Rolando Mandragora (Pescara), Luca Mazzitelli (Brescia), Lorenzo Pellegrini (Sassuolo);
Forwards: Domenico Berardi (Sassuolo), Kingsley Boateng (Bari), Alberto Cerri (Cagliari), Luca Garritano (Cesena), Gaetano Monachello (Atalanta), Federico Ricci (Crotone), Valerio Lorenzo Rosseti (Cesena).
Staff: Head of Delegation: Giancarlo Antognoni; Head Coach: Luigi Di Biagio; Assistant Coach: Carmine Nunziata; Secretary: Emiliano Cozzi; Goalkeeping Coach: Antonio Chimenti; Fitness coach: Vito Azzone; Doctors: Angelo De Carli and Carmine Costabile; Physiotherapists: Enzo Paolini and Fabrizio Scalzi; Kitmen: Claudio Gagliardi and Andrea Russo.
 
The schedule (all times CET unless specified)
Thursday, 24th March

19.00 game REPUBLIC OF IRELAND vs. ITALY Under 21 at Regional Sports Centre Stadium – Waterford
Followed by press conference and transfer to the Hotel Clayton of Dublin Friday, 25th March
11.30 training at AUL Complex – Dublin (behind closed doors)
17.20 flight  Dublin/Barcelona and transfer to AC Hotel in Sant Cugat Saturday, 26th March
13.00 press conference (players)
15.30 training session at Centre d’Alt Rendiment – Sant Cugat (behind closed doors) Sunday, 27th March
15.30 CEST training session at Centre d’Alt Rendiment – Sant Cugat (behind closed doors) Monday, 28th March
10.00 CEST transfer to Hotel Centric Atiram in Andorra
16.30 CEST press conference Estadi Municipal in Andorra
17.30 CEST training session at Estadi Municipal in Andorra (open to the press for the first 15 ,minutes) Tuesday, 29th March
18.30 CEST match ANDORRA vs. ITALY Under 21 at Estadi Municipal – Andorra
Followed by press conference and transfer to AC Hotel in Sant Cugat Wednesday 30th March
09.00 CEST transfer to Barcelona airport and players and staff can rejoin their clubs. Table: ITALY 16 points, Slovenia 12, Serbia 10, Republic of Ireland 9, Andorra and Lithuania 3   ]]>