Marcel Desailly says Roberto Mancini is the right coach to guide Italy through their current crisis, but has warned that the national side must develop at twice the speed of their rivals to recover lost ground.
The former France and Milan defender was speaking to Corriere dello Sport, with quotes reported by TuttoMercatoWeb, before Friday’s meeting in Paris. He acknowledged the scale of Italy’s rebuilding task, while pointing to France’s greater depth of talent and resources.
“We have three national teams. France A, France B and France C, and we can win something important with all of them,” Desailly said.
“You are rebuilding one now. Give yourselves time, but don’t take it too easy. The question is very simple: you have to rebuild from zero and that can’t be done in a day.
“But the other national teams aren’t standing around watching, in the meantime they grow, they develop, they improve. You have to run at double speed to make up the lost ground.”
Italy have missed the past three World Cups, but Desailly believes Mancini’s approach is beginning to restore belief, particularly through the promotion of younger players.
“There’s nobody better than Mancini to get through the great crisis you’re going through. Three times without a World Cup, unbelievable,” he said.
“I see that faith in young players has returned and that’s a good thing. So we French can teach you something too.”
Mancini’s recent selections have reflected that emphasis on youth. The average age of the starting XI in the defeat by Belgium was 23, while nine uncapped players were included in his first squad.
Issa Doumbia and Mohamed Ali Zoma were both given their international debuts. The team’s response in Bursa was considerably more positive, with Italy recording a 4-1 victory over Vincenzo Montella’s Turkiye.
Desailly also offered his support to Zinedine Zidane, who takes charge of France against the country in which he established his reputation.
The former France defender believes Zidane has the intelligence and experience required to make an immediate impact, and that the current squad possesses enough ability to deliver results.
“Blanc, Deschamps, Zidane, my generation is leaving something to the national team,” Desailly said.
“Zinedine is very intelligent, he knows what it means to be successful, and we have so much potential that it won’t be difficult for him to get results soon.
“We have faith in his insight and in the quality of the team’s play.”
