Azzurri Tracker: Selecting Italy's Squad as of Now
For fans who are having a feeling of soccer withdrawal following the end of the 2016 Euro Cup, there is now something to look forward to. The 2018 World Cup qualifiers are now upon us, which means a number of coaches and staff are tweaking and experimenting with their rosters in the hope of assembling the best possible squad for football's most prestigious tourney. Amongst those who are constantly experimenting, are the Italians. With Giampiero Ventura now at the helm and a slew of young budding stars, Ventura and co have plenty of options at their disposal. Within the squad, are many main stays and "locks" who are destined to make the team. In goal, there is very little doubt that Gianluigi Buffon will be the man between the pipes. Despite, the rapid progression and emergence of 17 year old goaltender, Gianluigi Donnarumma, the expectation is that the legendary Buffon, will be the man selected for the job. On defence however, are where there are question marks. For the past decade or so, Italian fans have been able to watch the Juventus trio of Leonardo Bonucci, Giorgio Chiellini, and Andrea Barzagli dominate the back line. However, with the emergence of promising talents like Alessio Romagnoli, Daniele Rugani, and Mattia De Sciligio, the Italian defence has now become a lot less predictable. In the midfield, the Italians seem poised to start with PSG maestro, Marco Verratti, and Juventus' defensive rock, Claudio Marchisio. In fact, the two were amongst a number of Italians who were unable to perform at the 2016 Euro Cup, leaving the Italian midfield heavily depleted. The Flanks are more than likely to be operated by Inter Milan newcomer, Antonio Candreva, and one of Alessandro Florenzi or Matteo Darmian. Up front is where things get very interesting. The Azzurri have been content lately to go with Inter Milan striker Eder, and new Chinese league super star, Graziano Pelle. However, with Mario Balotelli having a renaissance career at OGC Nice and young stars such as Andrea Belotti, Domenico Berardi, Lorenzo Insigne, Leonardo Pavoletti, and Manolo Gabbiadini having wonderful starts to their 2016-17 campaigns, the competition for a spot up front has gotten that much more fierce. Another viable option would also be forgotten man, Giuseppe Rossi. Rossi had very high hopes as a youngster with the Azzurri but unfortunately has had to endure a rather injury plagued career. With a clean bill of health, the hope is that Rossi will be able to return to form, making the Italian attack a major threat once again. The performance of Eder to me does not warrant a starting position or even a spot on the squad in my opinion. Other than his important goal vs Sweden during the Euro Cup. he's been rather invisible with the Azzurri along with his club team. The Italian staff should be jumping at the opportunity to take advantage of Balotelli's resurgence and take advantage of an incredibly talented player. In addition, Berardi is another player who deserves the call as his performance's with the U-21 squad and club team Sassuolo, have been nothing short of spectacular. The Italians have a plethora youth waiting in the wings for their opportunity to represent the Azzurri. Sooner or later, the Italian federation will have to turn to them and allow them to utilize their youthful skill, pushing a side older players whose best days are now behind them. One thing is very clear- the Italian staff have some difficult decisions to make. Although I won't be apart of that decision making process, (as much as I would want to!) here is the squad I would use going into the World Cup and qualifying stages:
Starting XI: Buffon, Bonucci, Romagnoli, Rugani, Verratti, Marchisio, Candreva, Florenzi, Berardi, Insigne, Balotelli
Bench: Donnarumma, Perin, Darmian, Chiellini, Criscito, De Rossi, Bonaventura, Belotti, Pelle, Insigne, Gabbiadini, Pavoletti, El Shaarawy
