As the senior side, the Italy U16s walked away from the home game against Germany with a defeat: having gone two-nil up, the Azzurrini conceded just before the break and closed out the game with a 3-2 scoreline. The defeat is incredibly disappointing, especially given the flow of the game.

Fugazzola (4’) and Giammattei (39’) secured the initial 2-0 Azzurrini lead but with just moments before the break, Najdi got the German’s back in it. Zarquelain bagged the equaliser in the 68th minute and Najdi the winner in the 81st.

Azzurrini Head Coach, Marco Scarpa: “I want to say it’s a shame. We managed the game well for large stretches and were two-nil up, almost making it three. In the second half, we lost out on the result, a bit for the changes, a bit for losing the two-goal lead, a bit for their physicality. I’m disappointed for the lads because aside from it all, they played a good game, intense and with good technical skills”.

“The good thing about these two friendlies, though, is the fact that we can try again in three days. There will be many changes, as always in this format, to assess all the lads. These tests are here for everyone to get a taste of international football”.