Under 20, Uruguay 1-0 Italy, goal by Rodriguez in the 86th minute

Too bad: Italy fell in the final against Uruguay (1-0), missing the appointment with what would have been the historic first U20 World title (after a third and a fourth place). Luciano Rodriguez decides in the final – returning from a two-match suspension and also called up by Bielsa in the senior national team – with a header from a corner kick that legitimizes Celeste’s superiority in the final in La Plata. Coach Marcelo Broli’s Uruguay thus won the title at the third attempt, after losing the final in 2013 against Paul Pogba’s France. But it is a defeat, that of Carmine Nunziata’s Azzurrini, which must not compromise the judgment on the extraordinary work done in the Argentine expedition. Started with a squad completed with difficulty and with a thousand doubts, but arrived at its destination amid dazzling flashes of talent and the satisfaction of having become, despite everything, a real team that smacks of the future.

The choices

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Nunziata changes the 11 with respect to the quarterfinals and semifinals: the magic against South Korea is worth a new starting shirt for Pafundi (in place of Ambrosino), Faticanti also returns as a low top with Giovane climbing left back and Turicchia on the opposite side (Zanotti on the bench). In the first 10 minutes Uruguay practices shooting from outside, generating apprehension: Diaz tries twice, without worrying Desplanches too much but in any case forcing the Azzurri to stay low. Baldanzi pulls his head out of the shell, winning a free-kick from the left trocar in the quarter of an hour: on Ghilardi’s side it is Boselli who touches with his arm adhering to the body (all regular), while then the Defensor Sporting centre-back himself puts on the trajectory of Pafundi’s first interesting left. Skirmishes, because then the first big opportunity is for Celeste: from a corner, Duarte escapes the marking and goes straight on goal with his header, however finding a super reflex from Desplanches. Real thrill. We arrive at the interval without any other big jolts but with the sensation of finding ourselves facing the toughest opponent of this world championship: the Uruguayans, with significant energy in their legs, also combine defensive solidity (they haven’t conceded goals in 5 games out of 6) and a concrete and vertical game, unbalanced to the left where the Genoese Matturro rides without fear. The left-handed full-back, brought to Italy in January for three million plus bonuses, also has an Italian passport thanks to his ancestors from the province of Potenza.

New arrangement

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A time of suffering pushes Nunziata to intervene in the interval with a substitution with multiple consequences: Zanotti (who goes to the right) for Faticanti, Giovane advances from mezzala with Turicchia in the natural position of left full-back. The lighter opening, with the return of the little pair Baldanzi-Pafundi behind Ambrosino, is clearly an invitation to phrasing but on a field that does not allow it. Nunziata thus sums up after 55′ a choice that didn’t pay off: Pafundi and Ambrosino went out to leave room for Esposito (whose evening of the three finals/play-offs in the family, Spezia with Salvatore, Bari with Sebastiano and Italia with Pio, ended badly) and Montevago. Thus we return to the initial set-up of the last three games, with Baldanzi behind two role forwards. From the new design, while remaining an evening of troubles, Italy seems to benefit from it by finding a couple of fluid exits on the right chain. 10 minutes from the 90th minute, a potential turning point: the Swedish referee Nyberg goes red for a risky challenge by Prati on Diaz, but the on field review convinces him to change the color of the card to yellow. A sigh of relief and bursts of boos from the very clear Uruguayan majority in the stands, but it is an ephemeral satisfaction. In fact, only a couple of minutes pass and the balance is broken, with the troubles still arriving from the corner: on a pinball machine that is triggered in the Desplanches area, the blue markers are unable to sweep with the right malice and the head appears by Luciano Rodriguez, his first world goal after the 5 scored at the South American Sub 20 between January and February. Lethal blow and blue tears, which must be wiped away with pride. Because they can’t erase everything that was good.

Gravina and Nunziata

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“Well done guys, you are the best of Italian youth!”, was the message that the FIGC president Gabriele Gravina sent to the Azzurrini at the final whistle. “The defeat in the final does not erase the extraordinary path of which this national team has been capable. I thank all the boys, the coach Nunziata, the technical and organizational staff because such results cannot be achieved without the decisive contribution of all the members of the delegation. The great journey of the Under 20 national team confirms two things: there are great talents in Italian football and the work of Club Italia allows them to exalt themselves to the fullest. Thanks to the intense emotions that the Azzurrini gave us, we have finally returned to talking about young players, but now we have to give them more and more space, make them grow and allow them to develop their talent”. “In this match the Uruguayans were better than us – Nunziata’s analysis -. The pitch didn’t help us, but I think it was an incredible journey. We have to thank these guys for what they have made us live this month. They did incredible things: this game doesn’t erase the good things that have been done, playing seven games in 21 days isn’t easy.” Italy can console itself with the title of top scorer won by Cesare Casadei, author of seven goals in seven games.