In a lively UEFA Nations League Group A3 match Italy beat Poland 1-0 at the Silesian Stadium,
The first-half failed to separate the two sides, though Italy could easily have put the game to bed within the first 45 minutes were it not for the crossbar being struck twice and some fine goalkeeping from Wojciech Szczesny.
After the restart, Italy continued to press in search of an opening goal, but Federico Bernardeschi, Federico Chiesa and Lorenzo Insigne proved wasteful in the final third.
However, in the dying embers Cristiano Biraghi stepped up to poke home from three yards and give Italy all three points. So, with that being said, what did we learn?
1. Mancini’s midfield masterclass
The central midfield tripartite of Marco Verratti, Jorginho and Nicolo Barella were a sight to behold at times, with the trio playing with an almost telepathic understanding of each other.
They were the nucleus of Gli Azzurri’s play and dominated the middle of the park, with Jorginho exerting control of the match in the typical fashion Chelsea fans have become accustomed to this season, while Verratti dictated the tempo of play, and Barella provided an excellent outlet.
Poland’s central midfield hardly had a sniff and they were completely played off the park as Italy’s central trident flourished, and this could now be the basis for Mancini in building a more formidable and consistent side.
Italian football is synonymous with artistic defending and graceful passing, but the nation have been bereft of tactically astute central midfielders in recent years. However, in Verratti, Barella and Jorginho, they had something almost reminiscent of their Euro 2012 runners-up side.
2. Scintillating Szczesny
What a performance. The Juventus shot-stopper has been in-and-out of the side since the World Cup, with manager Jerzy Brzeczek flicking between him and West Ham gloveman Lukasz Fabianski, but he proved why he is the Eagles’ undisputed No. 1 tonight.
The 28-year-old produced a number of exceptional saves in the first-half, and Italy would have headed into their dressing room dumbfounded as to how they failed to break the deadlock, with Szczesny making four saves compared to Gianluigi Donnarumma’s zero.
The 6ft 5in stopper has often played second fiddle during his career, first at Arsenal, and then at Juventus, biding his time on the periphery of first-team action, but his patience has now paid off as he is the main man for both club and country.
Goalkeepers tend to improve as they get older, and that is certainly looking like that is the case with Szczesny, who is enjoying the form of his life at the moment. The last minute goal is very harsh on the Pole, who had a fine game.
3. Misfiring Chiesa
Prior to this match Federico Chiesa had produced twice as many shots on target (six) than any other player during Roberto Mancini’s tenure as Italy manager, and he is still yet to open his account for his homeland.
The Fiorentina forward proved a real nuisance tonight and squandered a number of glorious opportunities to net his first Gli Azzurri goal; first the woodwork denied him, and then a tame first-half header just brushed a modicum of his scalp, failing to truly test Szczesny.
Given Italy’s dominance, it remains beggars belief how Chiesa failed to find the back of the net, but if he continues to showcase his brilliant positional awareness and make himself available in dangerous areas, then it is only a matter of time before the young Italian gets off the mark.
Chiesa has been an ever-present during the Mancini era, playing in every single match since the former Manchester City manager took the reigns in May.
4. Mancini secures second win
Roberto Mancini has so far endured a poor start to his tenure as Italy manager. Prior to tonight he had won just one match in five, and that came during his debut on the touchlines against Saudi Arabia back in May.
Since then, the 53-year-old has overseen defeats against France and Portugal, while further drawing against Poland and Ukraine last week, though he has now put an end to that bad form with a last-minute win tonight.
Discernible question marks have been raised about the capacity of Mancini to turn around the nation’s fortunes, and reinstate them in the pantheon of footballing nations; so far the Italian tactician looks tentative, but it is still early days, and this is a manager with an abundance of experience.
In fairness to Mancini, the Italians were fantastic tonight, with his side dominating the match from start to finish, and their dominance finally paid off in the closing stages of the match.
5. The first Nations League relegation
Poland have become the first nation to be relegated from the Nations League after suffering defeat to Italy tonight, and in truth, they dissevered the loss having been played off the park by Mancini’s men.
Defeat now means they will have to ply their trade in League B next season, having failed to win any of their opening three matches of Group A3, losing to Portugal and Italy respectively, while picking up just the single point against the Italians in the reverse fixture.
DLL
Poland are the first ever side to be relegated in the UEFA Nations League.
They will play in League B next season. pic.twitter.com/Le3uWO2Ekb
— Squawka Football (@Squawka) October 14, 2018
Despite boasting an embarrassment of attacking riches in Robert Lewandowski, Arkadiusz Milik and Krzysztof Piatek, Poland looked bereft of any attacking intent, with the latter failing to even make it onto the pitch.
This is certainly one of the best attacking line-ups the Eagles are ever likely to see, and with Lewandowski very much entering his twilight years, it seems almost criminal that they haven’t offered more of a threat in the Nations League so far.
The post Poland 0-1 Italy: Five things learned from Nations League’s first relegation battle appeared first on Squawka News.
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