Now it's getting serious. Once the hangover (in a figurative sense of course!) of the success over the Netherlands has been sobered up, Italy is called to repeat itself in Oslo, where tonight (20.45 pm), the long journey that should lead to Euro 2016 will begin. he opponent, Mathias Hogmo's Norway, is certainly inferior to the orange national team defeated on Thursday in Bari but the match is much more important. There are heavy points up for grabs and if it is true that a negative result would have little effect on the Azzurri's race (after all, we are only on the first day) it is equally true that it would create many problems on an emotional level. In fact, a success in a friendly is not enough to forget all the frailties of a team that came out of the World Cup with broken bones, both technically and humanly.
That's why, once again, all eyes are on Antonio Conte, the true top player of the Italian national team. “I am very happy with the work done in these days – explained the coach, who presented himself at the press conference together with Bonucci. – The boys have given great availability and understood my idea of football quite well. Of course, compared to a club team, time is short and you have to do in 9 days what you would otherwise do in a month, but I am convinced that we have taken the right path." Yet the days that preceded the challenge against Norway were certainly not clear days.
In fact, the controversies between the Chiellini case (recalled by Juve after an initial permission to remain in retreat, with accusations of conspiracy by team manager Oriali and a harsh reply from the Juventus club) and the Lotito case (his presence, son of a long-standing alliance with Tavecchio, caused a cry of scandal) enlivened the eve much more than one could expect. “I have fairly broad shoulders – replied Conte. – The Chiellini affair will serve as a lesson for us, in the future we will have to manage situations like this better. He was injured, he couldn't have played anyway and it's good that he returned to Juve. But let one thing be clear: I am here to unite, not to divide. If we want to do something important we must all work together. lot? It was explained to me that, as a federal councilor, he has every right to stay with us and as long as he doesn't bother me on football issues, everything will be fine. And I know that he would never allow himself to intrude on my work… ”.
The tone is different compared to the Juventus times, the attitude is not: Antonio Conte goes his own way and anyone who doesn't follow him can consider himself cut off. In all of this tonight there is a game to play. Whatever the coach says (“Norway is a tricky team, to be taken with a grain of salt, we'll have to be very careful”) the opponent is anything but irresistible. Positioned in the unenviable 53rd place in the Fifa ranking, with only one win in their last eleven games, the Norwegians are devoid of international stars (the "top players" are King, Blackburn centre-forward, goalkeeper Nyland and the offensive wingers Moeller-Daehli and Elyounoussi) and practice defensive and counter-attack kick. But their coach (Mathias Hogmo, 54 years old, a career between Rosemborg, Tromsoe and Djurgarden) is not going to be beaten from the start.
"If I'm not mistaken, Italy too, after the World Cup, had won only one in the last nine, right?" he teased at the press conference, thus further charging his players, already quite galvanized by the sell out of the Ullevaal Stadion in Oslo. However, it is clear that Italy will not have to be intimidated and play their own football, based on the ordinance 3-5-2. Buffon will return in goal, in defense confirmation for the Ranocchia-Bonucci-Astori trio, in midfield De Rossi in the control room, Florenzi and Giaccarini inside (Marchisio is suspended), Darmian and De Sciglio on the flanks. In attack, needless to say, confirmation of the Immobile-Zaza couple, highly praised after the excellent performance in Bari.
