What has happened to Italy's national team? #shorts

On the brink of not qualifying for the third world cup in a row - where has it all gone wrong for the European Champions of 2020?

Transcript

00:00Just four years ago, Italy were crowned Champions of Europe amidst the longest unbeaten run in

00:05international football history. Now, they're staring failure to qualify for their third

00:09successive World Cup, having qualified for all previous 20 additions. So what is wrong with the

00:15Italian national team? A lot of the blame is at club level. Italian clubs are under huge financial

00:20pressure from top to bottom, and simply put, youth development is not a priority. Coaches at all age

00:26groups prioritise winning at all costs, rather than allowing young players to grow into future

00:30stars. Individual attributes are second to tactical and physical ones. At first team level, ready-made

00:35players from abroad are preferred, meaning young Italian players' development is stunted. Is some

00:40of it tactical? Italian football has historically been defensive and low intensity. Despite the

00:44apparent direction of the Premier League, modern football is the antithesis of the classic Italian

00:49Catenaccio. Whilst this may work in a seven-game tournament, it does not breed expansive, versatile

00:54footballers who can break down the so-called smaller nations that Italy face in qualifiers. Or is it

01:00just cyclical? Italy are not the only historically dominant national team on something of a drought.

01:04You can't produce Maldini, Cannavaro, Pirlo, Del Piero and Totti in every single generation.

01:10Italian youth teams are showing promise. Maybe they'll be back sooner than we think.