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Italy's Nations League campaign went from bad to worse after a slender 1-0 defeat to Portugal in a top billing Group 3 clash in Lisbon. Andre Silva fired the Euro 2016 champions to crucial three points with an exquisite close-range as the Azzurris once again cut a frustrated figure.
A penalty from Jorginho saved the blushes in the opener against Poland last week, but there was no such reprieve this time around. Italy's attack continued to underwhelm despite the chop and changes while the new crop of youngsters too offered little hope. The road to resurrection looks like a long way for Mancini and his band of busted flushes.
Here are the hits and flops of the game:
#1 Hit: Andre Silva
Portugal's hero of the night, Andre Silva was back among the goals after a considerable barren run. He failed to provide the spark at the World Cup he otherwise did during the qualifiers, drawing a blank in all three starts. But the Valencia hitman was back in business today and led his side to three vital points.
With no Cristiano Ronaldo to partner him upfront, Silva was the focal point of Portugal's attack and did prove to be a menace with his movements and great link-up play. His decisive moment of the game came shortly after the break when he finally broke the deadlock. Bruma scythed down into the area to lay a defense-splitting pass to Silva, who then nonchalantly rounded it off after taking a turn and nestling the ball into the bottom corner.
A goal of sublime quality.
#2 Flop: Italy's attack
One of Italy's more pressing concerns during the catastrophic World Cup qualifying campaign was the blunt attack. Scoring 21 times in 10 outings isn't bad, but 9 of them came against a Liechtenstein side that languishes at 180 in world rankings. So that's 12 goals in the other 8 games. Now the problem is conspicuous. And it doesn't seem to subside anytime soon.
Manager Roberto Mancini opted to deploy both Ciro Immobile and Simone Zaza upfront in a 4-4-2 shape after going with Mario Balotelli in the Poland game. But the decision didn't yield anything positive here too, as neither striker could muster anything of note in the match. Zaza was virtually nonexistent, while Immobile was clumsy and lacked confidence. And this time there was no penalty to come to their rescue.
Italy's midfield too failed to provide the creative support as Portugal weren't really tested. But the Azzurri strike force must click into gear soon enough else risk being relegated to League B.
#3 Hit: Joao Cancelo
Another bright Portuguese youngster, Cancelo has found it difficult to translate his club heroics with the national side. He did impress during the initial stages of the World Cup qualifiers but a glaring lack of consistency cost him a place at the tournament proper. The Juventus fullback has also been recalled for the Nations League and took no time to remind everyone about his capabilities.
Cancelo was an immense threat down the right, flailing up and down the flank relentlessly. He connected well with the attack and made sure his attacking penchant doesn't leave space at the back for anyone to run into. Italy's Giacomo Bonaventura in particular was given a hard time. Both have tussled on multiple occasions in the Serie A, so there was no love lost here too. But Cancelo simply kept him at an arm's length by close man-marking and challenging on the ball.
An all-around performance from the 24-year old.
#4 Flop: Mancini's rotation policy
Italy manager Roberto Mancini made as many as 9 changes to the line-up that started against Poland in the previous clash. Ostracizing all the primus inter pares, he went with a group of young and inexperienced players. Whilst it reflects on the manager's propensity to hand the young guns a chance, the timing to do so was incorrect. Having dropped points in the first game, it was imperative for the Azzurri's to pick up at least another point here considering Portugal are a bigger proposition than Poland too.
However, Mancini paid the price. The defensive quartet of Criscito, Romagnoli, Caldara and Lazzari seems like a makeshift backline, while the absence of Bernardeschi and Insigne sapped the team of creativity. Immobile and Zaza were starved of proper service and on their part, failed to conjure a rabbit out of their own hat as well. Donnarumma was the sole bright spot for this team over two games.
Mancini can try out a formation like this during the inconsequential friendlies, but experimenting during a competitive game can have direct repercussions on the Euro 2020 qualifiers if results turn out like this. Either way, he's running out of time.
