Mancini: 'I want serenity under the Christmas tree'

Italy CT Roberto Mancini said he hopes to ‘learn from history’ and bring the Azzurri to the 2022 World Cup. ‘We would like to repeat ourselves’.

The Azzurri picked up the EURO 2020 over the summer but have since struggled to deliver the same performances in the World Cup Qualifiers for Qatar 2022.

Italy prepare for the play-offs in March, when Mancini’s men face North Macedonia in the semi-final and play for a place in the Final against the winner between Turkey and Portugal.

Mancini wanted to ‘celebrate’ the win at Wembley in July during the Gazzetta Awards and praised the squad he helped steer to the top of Europe.

“Let’s celebrate the past, it’s important to learn from history,” Mancini told TMW. “Then we will think about the 2022 World Cup.

“What we did was incredible, the lads were extraordinary, and we would like to repeat ourselves shortly.”

The Italy CT was asked what he would hope to find under the Christmas tree this term and replied: “Peace of mind, that COVID will go away and let us come back to life.”