Roberto Mancini, coach of the Italian national football team, called on his players to continue the awakening and the good results achieved in the current international break, stressing that qualification for the quarter-finals of the UEFA Nations League will be decided in the final round on Belgian soil.
The Italian national team ended the first batch of its Nations League matches with a convincing 3-1 victory over its Turkish counterpart the day before yesterday at the Dall'Ara stadium in Bologna, keeping its hopes of reaching the quarter-finals alive.
Gianluca Scamacca gave the "Azzurri" the lead after 26 minutes, before Aral Şimşir equalized just over an hour into the match, but Italy responded quickly with two goals by Riccardo Calafiori and Pio Esposito, sealing their second win in four matches.
Italy rose to second place in Group 1 of League A, three points behind group leaders France and one point ahead of Belgium. Meanwhile, Turkey sits at the bottom of the standings without any points.
The first and second-placed teams qualify for the quarter-finals.
Italy has two matches remaining: the first at home against France on 12 November, and the second away against Belgium on 15 November.
Mancini told "Rai Uno" after the victory over Turkey: "We suffered a bit at the beginning, but the match was good overall. With all these changes, it was natural to lose some cohesion, but the team showed good resilience and responded quickly after Turkey's equalizer."
He added, warning: "We must continue on this path in November, as everything will be decided for us in our match against Belgium."
He continued: "We are happy with the collective development the team is achieving, regardless of the results. Just continuing to compete for qualification is a good goal."
Mancini began his second tenure at the helm of his country's technical management with a 0-2 defeat against visiting Belgium, but responded with a major 4-1 victory over Turkey in Bursa, then snatched a valuable 1-1 draw away to France, before renewing his victory over Turkey under the leadership of his compatriot Vincenzo Montella 3-1.
Mancini said: "Although we made many changes, fatigue was evident to everyone and we suffered a little."
The coach, who fielded newcomers Alessandro Romano and Issa Doumbia in midfield from the start, alongside Antonio Vergara who made his international debut on the wing, added: "But we managed to score, and then to score again right after the equalizer."
He continued: "We must keep playing. We are currently in second place, and we are likely to face a battle to maintain this position in Belgium."
Italy is undergoing a rebuilding phase under the leadership of Mancini, who returned to coach a team that failed to qualify for the last three editions of the World Cup.
Mancini said that the "Azzurri's" victory over Turkey reflects the development the team is undergoing despite numerous changes and fatigue, stressing that qualification for the quarter-finals will likely be decided in Belgium.
Mancini praised Inter Milan striker Francesco Pio Esposito, considering that he possesses the attributes to become a prominent striker in the future.
He said: "I think he is hungry for goals, competition, and playing. He is an exceptional player, and I see that in two years he could become a striker capable of giving the team calmness and stability in performance, just like Christian Vieri and Luca Toni used to do."
He added: "Based on his physical strength and technical abilities, I believe he is capable of becoming a great striker."
Esposito sealed the victory three minutes before the end by scoring his seventh goal in 13 matches, after coming on as a substitute for Scamacca, the scorer of the first goal.
It was the second international goal for the Atalanta striker after his goal against England three years ago.
Scamacca said after the match: "I am very happy. Not because of the goal itself, but because the victory was extremely important for us."
He added: "We knew it wouldn't be easy because Turkey is an attacking and strong team, but we played an excellent match."
