The four world titles are in the past, just like the failed qualification campaigns for Russia 2018 and Qatar 2022. It’s now time to focus solely on the present and prepare for Thursday’s match against Northern Ireland in the best possible way. Gennaro Gattuso is ready, the long wait is over. This afternoon, he will finally take charge of a training session four months on from the last match against Norway. 

The Head Coach spoke in the press conference, which was preceded by a tribute to Michele Haimovici, former press officer of the AIAC and Empoli, as well as a great supporter of the national team, who passed away last month at the age of 54. Gattuso stated: “We must only have our minds on Thursday’s match. There are no excuses (speaking about injuries) it’d be too easy to use that. Other teams have injuries, it’s inevitable after 30 matches in the season. We’ve worked a lot, my staff and I have done all we can. Now, it’s time to think about the match on Thursday and nothing else”. In the first six months of his tenure, the Head Coach has given a lot, receiving a lot in return: “I wanted to face these two matches with my certainties. I hope, with all my heart, that we achieve this objective, the group deserves it. There’s  no need to stress the players out, they know what we’re playing for. Obviously, there’s going to be a bit of tension, but we must do our best to spread lots of positivity”. 

 

CHIESA OUT, CAMBIAGHI IN. This morning, the news came that Federico Chiesa had withdrawn from the squad, two years after his last appearance in the EURO 2024 Round of 16. The Head Coach decided to call up Nicolò Cambiaghi in his place: “Chiesa responded to the call-up. On a physical level, he had a few problems and we decided that there was no point in him staying”. Scamacca, Bastoni, Tonali, Mancini are other Azzurri players who picked up slight injuries with their teams but have arrived at the Centro Tecnico Federale, owing to a great sense of belonging: “Since my arrival, I’ve seen a great attitude, you could almost touch it. Scamacca has a problem with his adductor, we’ll evaluate him day after day, just like Bastoni. Tonali will do some light work today, hopefully he’ll be available tomorrow. Mancini has a bit of fatigue, Calafiori has a slight niggle but we expect to have him with us. Our medical staff are very prepared and we’ll make decisions in the right way”. 
 

380 MATCHES WATCHED. As he didn’t have the chance to organise a camp, Gattuso went away to watch the Azzurri following the Norway match, organising dinners around Italy and in London to be physically close to his players. Since last August, the Head Coach and his staff have watched 380 live games: 259 Serie A matches out of 300 played, 62 games in the Champions League, Europa League and Conference League, 32 in foreign leagues, 15 Coppa Italia matches, nine played by other National Teams and three in the Supercoppa Italiana played in Saudi Arabia. “It’s been tiring work, but fun. We’ve always been present and I have the Federation to thank for that”. 

THE CHOICE OF BERGAMO. The National Team will return to Bergamo, the stadium that hosted Gattuso’s first game in charge. Tickets for the game sold out in just a few hours, with the Azzurri able to count on 23,000 fans: “I chose the stadium, I have to thank Gravina and Buffon for backing this decision. In September (against Estonia), the first half ended 0-0, and despite the result they still applauded us. In a stadium of 50 or 60,000 fans, after ten minutes you might make a mistake and then the fans start whistling. I want to play in a tight and compact stadium, I hope I’ve got it right”. 

SENSING DANGER.  There’s maximum respect for Northern Ireland and total concentration on Thursday’s semi-final. Despite being pushed down to 69th position in the FIFA Rankings, Michael O’Neill’s side are not a team that should be underestimated. As a very physical side, Northern Ireland could cause a lot of damage especially from dead ball situations and counter-attacks: “They run a lot, they’re able to play vertically and caused problems from set pieces. We’ll need to be aware and sense the danger. Since I’ve coached the players, I’ve noticed that, at times, we’ve not been able to sense it”. 


SQUAD LIST 

Goalkeepers: Elia Caprile (Cagliari), Marco Carnesecchi (Atalanta), Gianluigi Donnarumma, (Manchester City), Alex Meret (Napoli);

Defenders: Alessandro Bastoni (Inter), Alessandro Buongiorno (Napoli), Riccardo Calafiori (Arsenal), Andrea Cambiaso (Juventus), Diego Coppola (Paris FC), Federico Dimarco (Inter), Federico Gatti (Juventus), Gianluca Mancini (Roma), Marco Palestra (Cagliari), Giorgio Scalvini (Atalanta), Leonardo Spinazzola (Napoli);

Midfielders: Nicolò Barella (Inter), Bryan Cristante (Roma), Davide Frattesi (Inter), Manuel Locatelli (Juventus), Niccolò Pisilli (Roma), Sandro Tonali (Newcastle);

Forwards: Nicolò Cambiaghi (Bologna), Francesco Pio Esposito (Inter), Moise Kean (Fiorentina), Matteo Politano (Napoli), Giacomo Raspadori (Atalanta), Mateo Retegui (Al-Qadsiah), Gianluca Scamacca (Atalanta).