It’s hard to imagine that he won’t be emotional tomorrow night (20:45 CEST, live on Rai 1 – refereed by Portugal’s Pinheiro), when the Inno di Mameli echoes through the Bergamo Stadium, marking his debut as the team’s head coach. Gennaro Gattuso is raring to go, and very aware that after the disappointing loss to Norway in June, there is no room for error. Italy need to beat Estonia, and a big win would be great, but this is not necessary. As the head coach rightly pointed out, thrashings are not in the team’s DNA: “I don’t have time to get emotional,” he began at the press conference. “There’s too much responsibility now. Maybe I’ll feel something when I see my parents in the stands tomorrow, but for now, I’m completely focused. I won’t lose sleep over nerves, but over what tactics to use and which players to play. We know we have a very tough job ahead of us, but we will give our all to reach our goal.”

After a moment to remember Giorgio Armani (“a great loss, he brought prestige to us Italians across the world”) the coach expressed his satisfaction with the first four days of training in Coverciano: “I couldn’t have asked for a better start. I have found a group of boys who are totally committed, as is everyone else working for the Federation. It’s been close to perfect so far and I think tomorrow will be a great game.” Other than a confirmed four-man defence, and three men in the build-up, Gattuso didn’t give any other indications about the formation or the starting eleven: “We will see tomorrow, the starting eleven doesn’t matter right now. We know what we need to get done and we have prepared for the game very well.”

WATCH OUT FOR ESTONIA. Down to 126th in the FIFA Rankings, Estonia have only won one of their four group-stage matches – against Moldova. They suffered narrow defeat to Norway and lost twice to Israel. Estonia have lost all of their last seven meetings with Italy. Most recently, defeat in Florence, in November 2020, when Italy won 4-0 thanks to two goals from Grifo and one each from Bernadeschi and Orsolini. There’s no denying that the Azzurri are the clear favourites, but they can’t afford to underestimate an opponent that gave Haaland and his teammates a run for their money back in June. Gattuso warned, “Estonia are a team that like to keep possession and play out from the back. They’re a well-organised team; they have a young coach with lots of ideas. We have to deliver a strong performance; everyone thinks it will be a walk in the park, but there are no easy games.” It’s essential that we have the right mindset: “We need to be both humble and sure of ourselves: humble when we make a mistake, but also confidence to attempt difficult moves without fear of getting it wrong.”

Nicolò Barella was also in Bergamo Stadium’s press room. He has the second-most appearances of anyone in the squad (63) behind Donnarumma. Despite being a champion of Europe, he has yet to play in a World Cup, just like Gigio. He didn’t shy away from some honest self-reflection on his recent performances for Italy: “In the last few international games, I could have, and should have, done better. There are lots of fixtures, and we get tired, but that’s no excuse. Now, we need to focus on moving forward and trying to score as many goals as possible. I have played in all competitions except in the World Cup for Italy – I want to bring us back to the level that we deserve.”

Gattuso is his fourth national team coach, after Ventura who gave him his first call-up in 2017, followed by Mancini and Spalletti. “We had some tough times during the end of the Mancini era, and with Spalletti. That’s why it’s so important for us to regroup now. Gattuso has given us a lot of peace of mind and confidence. He put us to work and now we need to deliver for him on the pitch.” Looking ahead to the Estonia match, he said, “We've analysed their strengths and what they're all about, and we've prepared for it. It won't be an easy game, but we're going to play to win.”

SQUAD LIST

Goalkeepers: Marco Carnesecchi (Atalanta), Gianluigi Donnarumma (Manchester City), Alex Meret (Napoli), Guglielmo Vicario (Tottenham);

Defenders: Alessandro Bastoni (Inter), Raoul Bellanova (Atalanta), Riccardo Calafiori (Arsenal), Andrea Cambiaso (Juventus), Giovanni Di Lorenzo (Napoli), Federico Dimarco (Inter), Federico Gatti (Juventus), Giovanni Leoni (Liverpool), Gianluca Mancini (Roma);

Midfielders:  Nicolò Barella (Inter), Giovanni Fabbian (Bologna), Davide Frattesi (Inter), Manuel Locatelli (Juventus), Nicolò Rovella (Lazio), Sandro Tonali (Newcastle);

Attackers: Francesco Pio Esposito (Inter), Moise Kean (Fiorentina), Daniel Maldini (Atalanta), Riccardo Orsolini (Bologna), Matteo Politano (Napoli), Giacomo Raspadori (Atletico Madrid), Mateo Retegui (Al-Qadsiah), Mattia Zaccagni (Lazio).

GROUP 1 MATCH SCHEDULE AND STANDINGS

FRIDAY 5 SEPTEMBER

20:45 – Moldova vs. Israel (Chisinau)

20:45 – ITALY vs. Estonia (Bergamo)

Group Table: Norway 12 points (4 games played), Israel 6 (P3), Estonia 3 (P4), Moldova 0 (P3)