Fratelli Moderni d’Italia
How the 2016 rendition of the Azzurri has quietly become a force to be reckoned with.
I remember watching Italy and despising them. When I first began getting into soccer, there was something I couldn’t quite put my finger on with them, but I loathed it. Maybe it was the way they dove to the ground too easily as if battling a gale-force wind. Maybe it was the constant reports of match fixing and racism amongst its fan base. Maybe it was what others called “fluidity” with their passing that never seemed to go anywhere. Maybe I had a bad chicken Parmesan for dinner one night and it still hadn’t settled right with me. I’m not sure. But when I saw those blue kits, I cringed and instantly became a fan of the opposing team.
Fast-forward to 2016 and, I’ll be honest: I’m quietly pulling for this squad.
From late May through early June, sites like The Daily Mail, FOX Sports, and ESPNFC continuously wrote that the squad the Italian national team was sending to Euro 2016 was not great, using phrases like “least talented squad for half a century” and “short on attacking talent.” “Conte will need to use tactics to make up for their shortcomings,” another site wrote. Statements that would’ve made early 2000s Patrick giddy. And maybe they are less-talented; outside of Gigi Buffon’s traditional belting out of ”Il Canto degli Italiani”, there isn’t much familiarity with this squad beyond him and Daniele De Rossi. The Azzurri didn’t initially feel like the Italian team we have grown accustomed to seeing.
And yet here we are, with Italy in the quarterfinals.
Statistically speaking, their results haven’t jumped off the paper. Of the remaining teams, they are tied with Portugal for the second-fewest goals scored, and while they have only allowed one goal in the tournament, their Expected Goals Allowed is 3.6. They did lose to Ireland in the final match of the group stage, after all. So maybe they’re very fortunate to be in the quarterfinals, and they will bow out to a talented German opponent in the next round. Or maybe everything is lined up perfectly to make Italy legitimate contenders to win it all.
Italian manager Antonio Conte hasn’t changed his starting line up frequently this tournament besides replacing injuries, but he hasn’t had a reason to disrupt what’s been working. The staple to this line up has been the back three that involves Andrea Barzagli, Leonardo Bonucci, and Giorgio Chiellini. The trio have been able to close down on any attacking combination making their way into Italy’s defensive third. The center backs are able to play centrally and jam the penalty area thanks to De Sciglio and Florenzi (or Candreva before his injury) tracking back and taking care of any threats out wide when the opponent enters the attacking third. This shouldn’t be news, since this is how a 3–5–2 should be played. However, considering the work rate and amount of pitch covered by the wing backs in this system, high motor players are required, and what is impressive is the interchangeability in personnel that has still achieved the desired results. It’s one of the best exports to come out of Italy: great wine, fast cars, and wing backs that can easily link play from the defense to the attacking third.
What has helped take a lot of the burden off of the defense has been a well-organized midfield. While Parolo and Giaccherini don’t immediately leap off the page when looking at team sheets, their ability to close down on opponents as they attempt to generate an attack is an essential part to Italy’s success.
The midfield can be broken down into three roles, exemplified and executed to perfection against Spain. First, the wing backs play in the space between the defensive third and midfield, pressing up when the ball approaches their side of the pitch while the other sits back. Second, Giaccherini and Parolo press up and crowd the center of the midfield along with De Rossi and Pellè, preventing passing lanes to the middle. Finally, Éder sits up and centrally, forcing the opponent with the ball on one side of the pitch to play easy-to-disrupt long balls across to the other end of the pitch instead of allowing shorter, more controlled passes. This hinders the opponent’s ability to build up an attacking rhythm and typically ends with a desperate, inaccurate long ball either downfield or out of bounds.
One issue that arises in this system is when De Rossi moves up on defense. When Giaccherini or Parolo move high up to press and shut down the midfield, a space appears in front of the penalty area that can be exploited if the opponents in the midfield can avoid the pressure. Spain and Belgium had a few of these moments in their matches, however they were immediately met by one of the center backs. If they could get numbers forward, they might be able to threaten. Germany may have the man power and organization to pull this off; then again, that’s been a mighty tall ask, as we’ve witnessed so far this tournament.
On the attack, the Azzurri are able to fire midrange passes downfield into open spaces to quickly get downfield before their opponents are able to get organized. The mistakes this causes on their opponent’s end has allowed some beautiful passing that finds an open teammate in space more often than not.
It’s not the most efficient attack, especially since it relies on the opponent making mistakes, but it has gotten the job done so far. They have only generated seven key passes per match, which ties them for seventh-fewest in the tournament. Add to that a German side that has maintained 87.8% pass completion that averages the second-most passes per match with 649.8, it feels like a daunting task ahead for Italy. That is, until you notice that first place in both of those categories was Spain.
All of these components wouldn’t occur if it weren’t for the discipline instilled into the players by Antonio Conte. Whether their opponent has one main attacking threat like Zlatan Ibrahimovic for Sweden, or multiple threats like what can be found on Belgium and Spain, Conte has found a way to eliminate Italy’s opponents’ biggest threats. While nothing is more Italian than the 3–5–2, Conte’s version is an effective pressing style that dominates the midfield and restricts passing options for opponents, going beyond merely using tactics to make up for Italy’s shortcomings.
Perhaps the greatest contribution Conte has implemented is the man-marking. When opponents bring the ball into their half, Italy’s formation looks like a 5–3–1–1, with Éder drifting back to help apply pressure against a CDM or DB trying to work the ball forward. Meanwhile, there are tight lines, yet each player makes sure there is a man in front of them to mark, limiting the passing options. As a result, Italy has gotten the fourth-most interceptions in Euro 2016 with 15.8 per match.
Once they recover possession of the ball, in the least-Italian way possible, they don’t sit on possession and lull the opponent to sleep with their passing. So far in this tournament, Italy have had 47.3% possession, which ranks them fourteenth in Euro 2016. Instead, making up for the lack of attacking power they’ve enjoyed in the past, Conte has brought a style that capitalizes on their opponent’s mistakes and moves the ball downfield quickly.
Italy last won the European Championship in 1968, being runners-up in 2000 and 2012. Expectations weren’t all that great coming into this year’s tournament, and given the depth of talent on the squads of other countries, it was understandable as to why. Hell, I began watching the Euros expecting to roll my eyes as their matches popped on my television. All of a sudden, I’ve found they’ve seduced me like Monica Bellucci as a Bond woman.
At the moment, Italy are still hardly favored to win the whole thing, with 13/2 odds to win outright; the same odds given to Portugal, who play on an arguably easier half of the tournament bracket. But Italy were looked down upon and condescended to before the tournament began, and look how that has fared so far.
Patrick Onofre is co-creator of The Challengers Podcast, a soccer website and podcast that discusses the Premier League, the Bundesliga, and La Liga. Listen to the podcast on iTunes, like them on Facebook, and follow them on twitter — @ChallengersPod.
