Inter’s early elimination from the Champions League has put midfielder Nicolo Barella at a disadvantage ahead of the European Championship this summer, Italian journalist Luigi Garlando argues.
Barella is currently on international duty with Italy and is expected to start against Bulgaria tonight, as well as be included in coach Roberto Mancini’s squad for Euro 2021 this summer.
However, he has seen limited chances to play outside of Serie A after Inter were sent crashing out of Europe at the Group Stage of the Champions League in December.
Writing in a column published in today’s newspaper edition of La Gazzetta dello Sport, Garlando suggested that Barella and Juventus forward Federico Chiesa did not gave the opportunities of many other young players in Europe following the two Italian clubs’ respective eliminations.
“Tonight Barella and Chiesa are amongst the first choices, two of our best talents, but they can no longer count on the Champions League or the Europa League nights to grow and develop, unlike other young players in the big national teams who will compete for the European Championship in June,” Garlandi claimed.
“Our striker tonight, [Torino’s Andrea] Belotti, is currently battling to save his team [from relegation]. Let’s take all this into account if Italy are not as beautiful and dominant as we would like to be and as Mancini designed them to be.”
Garlando went on to assess Italy’s expected approach against Bulgaria, with the Azzurri coming into the match off the back of a 2-0 win over Northern Ireland, whilst lost 3-1 to Switzerland.
“The bad start to the World Cup Qualifiers will be a test of pride for Bulgaria. In short, there is no lack of reasons to be alert from the start, even though the best player to keep everyone alert will not be there in Giorgio Chiellini.
“From this point of view, Barella, Chiesa and Belotti, who return as starters and usually play with passion, are a guarantee.
“Mancini said it well ahead of the game: “In the second half in Parma [against Northern Ireland] Italy suffered because they tried to manage the game and not finish it off. This is a team built to always attack.” This is why they are loved, because in recent years they have attacked, played and won a lot and created expectations and demands, sometimes excessively,” Garlando added.