Euro 2024: Spalletti’s Italy attempting to reset stereotypical Italian football culture
Spectators of the ongoing European Championships that may not have kept up with Italian football over the past few years may be a tad confused watching the Italian national side that escaped into the last 16, where they take on a spirited Switzerland side on Saturday.Defending champions they may be, but having failed to qualify for World Cups on either side of their triumph in London three years ago, Italy were far from the favourites coming into this tournament – a fact laid bare by their laboured performances against Spain and Croatia in the group stages.
This is an unconventional Italian team. That is not down to their style — Roberto Mancini’s side that won in 2021 showed how the national football identity had long binned ‘Catenaccio’ for modern systems of short passing and hard pre...