BELFAST. Ninety minutes to ward off the ghosts of the playoffs. In Belfast, in the only city in Europe where a wall remains standing, Italy must overcome its own obstacle made up of adversaries and fears. Roberto Mancini is playing today (TV on Rai 1 at 8.45 pm) the possibility of direct access to the World Cup in Qatar, and the winning key is clear in his head: “We must not repeat the mistake we made with Switzerland, at the start: to make us take from anxiety. It is not a game for bad thoughts: let’s think about playing the ball on the ground and fast, and so we avoid having to resort to the repair exam, the March playoffs ».
Against Northern Ireland who never lost in these qualifiers at home at Windsor Park, a national team with difficulty in scoring and the obligation to win with many goals goes on the pitch. Here it is, then, the fear of the Azzurri: repeating the missteps committed against Switzerland – double penalty missed by Jorginho in the lead – could be fatal. It weighs more than the previous one 63 years ago, when a defeat in the same stadium cost the first, painful failure to qualify for the World Cup.
“I didn’t go to review the news, but I know the story: let’s avoid going so far back in time ..”, is Mancini’s exorcism, whose main effort in this “difficult moment, the first in three years”, is to keep far his spell a little tired from any thought that is not the mantra of play and fun. Simultaneously with the Belfast match, in fact, in Lucerne, Yakin’s Switzerland, who is tied with the Azzurri, will try to beat Bulgaria with many goals to cancel the last small advantage that remains to Italy, the +2 in goal difference .
«It will not count to have a true or a false nine – says Mancini – but to play with the right mentality, right from the first minute. Knowing that Northern Ireland is a really difficult opponent: here they have never lost and have never conceded a goal ». For this we will need another Italy than the one after the European triumph.
“At the European Championship this magnificent team had a particular spirit – says the captain, Bonucci – Nobody will ever cancel what we did this summer, but now we have to rediscover that team spirit and multiply it by one hundred”. In defense of his group, Mancini also spends words in this sense: “For three years, this national team has done something unthinkable, in which no one believed: now the first moment of real difficulty has arrived, but the boys must never forget that what did they do”.
Starting with the game: «They are tall and big, we are normal: long passes and crosses are useless: you have to play the ball on the ground and at speed. So you win. And without looking at all costs for the goleada, which comes as a consequence of the game ». The eight absences accumulated since the start of the retreat force the Italian coach to make some changes (“you have to be good even in bad luck”), even with respect to the Olimpico match: Belotti still faces the slag of the injury, Tonali is a candidate for a starting position like Berardi, who had obtained the penalty in Rome and maybe even wanted to beat him. Tomorrow, in case, the captain, Bonucci, will be on the spot.
Given the emergency full-backs (Zappacosta aggregate after the return home of Biraghi and Calabria), the defensive line is confirmed as strong play. In midfield, Mancini assures that he has seen a Barella recovered from the fatigue with which he arrived in retreat. “He’s recovered, he’s fine: even better than with Switzerland.” As for Tonali, «he’s been doing important things lately, and yes, I think he could start from the beginning. In attack, however, we will decide tomorrow », the words before finishing. “The boys are recovering after Friday, especially from fatigue,” concludes Mancini.
In short, the impression is that the national team is looking for a spark to rekindle the magic of the last two years. «Who will take the penalty after Jorginho’s mistake? No, I didn’t become the first penalty taker – Bonucci explained – we decided to leave everything unchanged, then in case we’ll see ». Also in this case, between Ireland and Italy there will be 90 ‘thrilling.
Probable formations.
RLANDA DEL NORD (3-5-2): 1 Peacock-Farrell, 17 McNair, 5 J. Evans, 20 Cathcart, 14 Dallas, 16 McCann, 8 S. Davis, 6 Saville, 11 Ferguson, 21 Magennis, 9 Washington. (12 Hazard, 23 Southwood, 2 Bradlet, 3 Lewis, 4 Flanagan, 7 McGinn, 10 Taylor, 13 C. EVans, 15 Jones, 18 Whyte, 19 Gailbraith, 22 Brown). Ct: Baraclough.
ITALY (4-3-3): 21 Donnarumma, 2 Di Lorenzo, 19 Bonucci, 15 Acerbi, 13 Emerson Palmieri, 18 Barella, 8 Jorginho, 6 Tonali, 14 Chiesa, 10 Insigne, 11 Berardi (22 Meret, 4 Zappacosta, 23 G. Mancini, 5 Locatelli, 12 Pessina, 20 Bernardeschi, 9 Belotti, 7 Raspadori, 17 Scamacca). Ct .: Mancini
Arbitro: Kovacs (Rom)