Italy will get down to work this afternoon at Coverciano and, in doing so, officially begin their World Cup qualifying mission. First, it’s North Macedonia in the play-off semi-finals on Thursday in Palermo, with the winners of this match set to face either Portugal or Turkey on Tuesday 29 March (in Porto or Konya). It represents a last chance for the Azzurri, who gradually arrived at the Federal Technical Centre following their commitments this past weekend: “Our objective is to win the World Cup,” said Roberto Mancini in his press conference to begin the week. “In order to do so, we need to win these two games.”

After picking up an injury against Udinese on Saturday, Napoli defender Giovanni Di Lorenzo has been forced to withdraw from the squad, with Mancini calling up Mattia De Sciglio in his place: “I tried to include those who could lend us the biggest hand,” the Head Coach explained. “We don’t have a lot of room to try new things. The core consists of those who were involved in the Euros, except for Bernardeschi, who isn’t fully fit. I couldn’t call up 40; we have enough. We’ll assess the players who still aren’t in the best shape.” Two such players are the two pillars of the Azzurri defence. While Chiellini played yesterday, Bonucci remained out and will perhaps only be able to make it for the second game: “Giorgio isn’t feeling too bad, the fact he played is a positive thing. He probably won’t play both games, but we’ll talk and make a decision. Leo is training and doing OK, but we’ll need to evaluate his situation ahead of the second game. In order to win, a team needs to have a great defence.”

The Head Coach is pleased with Berardi and Scamacca’s form (“They’re doing very well, but I can’t tell you what the line-up will be right now”) and Pellegrini’s exploits in the derby (“We see him as more of an attacking mezzala, it’s a possible option for us”), while he isn’t concerned about Insigne and Barella’s conditions (“They’ve always done well for the National Team. During the season, there are moments when you’re not always in top form”) or Donnarumma’s morale following his mistake in the Champions League match between Paris Saint-Germain and Real Madrid (“It’s better to have him on our side than against us”). As for why he preferred Joao Pedro to Balotelli, he explained: “In terms of numbers, I couldn’t call up another one. It’s always sad to leave a player at home, whether Balotelli, Calabria or Bernardeschi. But we made the assessment that Joao Pedro can also play as a second striker or an attacking winger.”

Optimistic but also cautious, Mancini isn’t thinking about a potential match against Portugal or Turkey. First of all, the Azzurri need to get the better of North Macedonia, a solid side who beat Germany away from home during their qualifying campaign and, in their last meeting with Italy, came away with a draw in Turin in October 2017. “The first match isn’t a given and won’t be easy. Then, we’ll perhaps have four days to prepare for the second game. I’m confident because I’m working with great players and professionals who, out of nothing, won the Euros when no one thought it was possible. This is where our confidence needs to stem from: from what we’ve already done.”

There were some excellent Italian triumphs at the weekend, from Ferrari’s one-two and the rugby side’s historic victory in Wales to Marcell Jacobs’s 60m gold at the World Athletics Indoor Championships. “Italian sport always brings great joy. It’s not possible to always win, but the level has always been very high. We kicked things off last summer and the others followed in our footsteps. Now, we hope the opposite will happen.”

Squad list

Goalkeepers: Alessio Cragno (Cagliari), Gianluigi Donnarumma (Paris Saint-Germain), Pierluigi Gollini (Tottenham), Salvatore Sirigu (Genoa);

Defenders: Francesco Acerbi (Lazio), Alessandro Bastoni (Inter), Cristiano Biraghi (Fiorentina), Leonardo Bonucci (Juventus), Giorgio Chiellini (Juventus), Mattia De Sciglio (Juventus), Emerson Palmieri (Lyon), Alessandro Florenzi (Milan), Luiz Felipe (Lazio), Gianluca Mancini (Roma);

Midfielders: Nicolò Barella (Inter), Bryan Cristante (Roma), Jorginho (Chelsea), Manuel Locatelli (Juventus), Lorenzo Pellegrini (Roma), Matteo Pessina (Atalanta), Stefano Sensi (Sampdoria), Sandro Tonali (Milan), Marco Verratti (Paris Saint-Germain);

Forwards: Andrea Belotti (Torino), Domenico Berardi (Sassuolo), Ciro Immobile (Lazio), Lorenzo Insigne (Napoli), Joao Pedro (Cagliari), Matteo Politano (Napoli), Giacomo Raspadori (Sassuolo), Gianluca Scamacca (Sassuolo) Mattia Zaccagni (Lazio), Nicolò Zaniolo (Roma);

Schedule

From Friday 18 to Sunday 20 March

Meet-up at the Coverciano Federal Technical Centre

Monday 21 March

13:45 – Press conference (Head Coach), Coverciano Auditorium (access for journalists and photographers*)

16:00 – Training, Campo V. Pozzo (open to journalists and photographers for first 15 minutes*)

Tuesday 22 March

13:45 – Press conference (player), Coverciano Auditorium (access for journalists*)

16:00 – Training, Campo V. Pozzo (behind closed doors**)

Wednesday 23 March

10:30 – Transfer from Florence to Palermo

17:30 – Press conference (Italy) at the Stadio Barbera in Palermo (access for journalists***)

18:00 – Training (Italy) at the Stadio Barbera in Palermo (open to the media for first 15 minutes***)

19:00 – Press conference (North Macedonia) at the Stadio Barbera in Palermo (access for journalists***)

19:30 – Training (North Macedonia) at the Stadio Barbera in Palermo (open to the media for first 15 minutes)

Thursday 24 March

20:45 Italy vs. North Macedonia

Followed by press conference and return to Coverciano***

Friday 25 March

16:00 – Training, Campo V. Pozzo (behind closed doors**)

Saturday 26 March

13:45 – Press conference (player), Coverciano Auditorium (access for journalists**)

16:00 – Training, Campo V. Pozzo (behind closed doors**)

Sunday 27 March

13:45 – Press conference (player), Coverciano Auditorium (access for journalists**)

16:00 – Training, Campo V. Pozzo (behind closed doors**)

Monday 28 March

TBC – Transfer to Oporto/Konya

TBC – Press conference (Italy)***

TBC – Training (Italy) (open to the media for first 15 minutes***)

TBC – Press conference (either Portugal or Turkey) (access for journalists***)

TBC – Training (either Portugal or Turkey) (open to the media for first 15 minutes***)

Tuesday 29 March

20:45 – Portugal/Turkey vs. Italy

Followed by press conference and return to Italy

*Depending on capacity, journalists and photographers will be granted access to the press conference and the first 15 minutes of the team’s training session on Monday 21 March

**From Tuesday 22 March, depending on capacity, only journalists will be granted access to press conferences. FIGC will distribute images of press conferences and training to media outlets on request once technical fees have been paid. For info, please contact Massimiliano Reale (FIGC Area Sales): email: m.reale@figc.it Tel.: 06.8491.3023.

***Media activities at the relevant match venues (MD-1 e MD) will be allowed for outlets with accreditation and as per exclusivity agreements with broadcasters. Access to press conferences will be limited depending on capacity.