Only a few hours after sealing a place in the Nations League Final Four, Italy Head Coach Roberto Mancini and his assistant Daniele De Rossi were guests at the Social Football Summit, an event, currently taking place at Stadio Olimpico in Rome, dedicated to innovation and digital transformation in the Football Industry. Several are the themes being discussed in the panel chaired by journalist Matteo Marani, from the modernisation of football and articulating sporting news to the advent of new technologies, of social media and big data.

The discussion also focused on Italy's recent results, starting from the European Championships win last year: "To win with Italy is the best thing that can happen," said Mancini, who on 10 October will celebrate 40 years since he made his debut for the Under-21s in 1982. "Missing out on the World Cup in Qatar is still an open wound, but it's time we understood our errors and wait patiently: the aim is to try and go to America in 2026 and win it. The future of the side is down to us in giving out trust to the youth, you can't expect young players to come straight in and do everything perfectly. This Italy is open to everyone, even to those who haven't behaved in the right way." Meanwhile, Italy will play in the Nations League Finals in June: "We've earned it. We beat England, who could win the World Cup and a really strong team in Hungary. The lads gave everything in a period where the physical condition for many wasn't perfect."

De Rossi also reflected on the value of youth: " They are incredibly fortunate, in that they have a Head Coach who is willing to watch them and isn't afraid to put them in. There's not as much talent as in the past, also because there are fewer players now learning on the streets or, as I did, going to the beach to play, but we've found four or five great prospects. Raspadori? I describe him as a 'young gentleman', someone who could have played in my time. I entered a dressing room where you sense people want to be there: it's a group that has shown it can rise from its ashes, just as it did in the Euros, which we look back on with great joy because we won it, but we already had some great feelings before Wembley. We were in a bubble for 50 days without seeing family, so from that point of view it was emotionally really strong, but the atmosphere was that good that if we had been told to stay for 10 more days, we would have done it without issue."