Italy coach Luciano Spalletti says he cares more about playing good football after his team qualified against Albania at Euro 2024.
The defending champions got off to a rough start, dropping 30 seconds and putting their Group B qualification in jeopardy.
With Croatia and Spain the other teams competing against the Azzurri, it was a must-win game for Spalletti's men.
They regrouped to return to Eastern Europe, scoring a goal from Alessandro Bastoni who found himself unmarked in the box 10 minutes after scoring.
Nicolo Barella then gave his team a goal five minutes later, scoring a superb strike to put Italy in the driving seat.
It was a topsy-turvy second half but the Italians did enough to get over the line, easing the pressure on themselves ahead of their two tough games ahead.
A win opens the celebration 🇮🇹#EURO2024 | #ITAALB pic.twitter.com/yLWS1dNlEi
– UEFA EURO 2024 (@EURO2024) June 15, 2024
Speaking after the game, Spalletti said: “Since I started coaching, I have been told that the most important thing is to win.”
“No, the important thing is to play well. To fight to win EURO 2024 we have to play good football.
“We were a bit deep in the first half, and it allowed Albania to use their physicality, to bring it into the mix.
“We have to trust our style – it's the way forward.”
Spalletti knows the task at hand and will need another win for Italy to top Group B.
Spain cruised past Croatia earlier in the day, scoring three goals without reply.
It seems to be the toughest competition of all and the head coach was thinking before the game.
He added: “Spain will probably stop in a different way in Albania, and put a lot of pressure on us.”
“We will need to move the ball faster than we did tonight.
Against Spain we will need to move the ball forward a lot, and look to play balls behind the defence.”
Italy take on Spain on June 20 in what should be an exciting must-watch for the neutrals.
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