Giampiero Ventura has begun work on the Italian national team since his announcement by the Italian Football Federation.
The 68-year old manager was unveiled following the departure of former manager of the team, Antonio Conte. Conte who used to manage Juventus decided to return to club football to manage Chelsea leaving the spot open. Ventura has coach a long list of clubs in Italy, spending five years in charge at Torino before accepting the two year deal from the Football Federation.
Ventura’s first task would be to ensure the team qualifies for the 2018 World Cup in Russia which is set to begin in a couple of weeks. His first match in charge would be when Italy play a friendly against France in Bari on the 1st of September. Italy are in Group G and will play against Albania, Israel, Macedonia, Liechtenstein and Spain for a chance to feature in 2018.
The team enjoyed decent success under Conte, getting to the quarter final before they lost out in penalties to Germany. They defeated Spain in the Round of 16 and enjoyed a good tournament in the group stage. The coach met with the media at the national training complex at Coverciano where he spoke of his delight to lead the national team. He appreciated the efforts Conte made in developing a team with great work ethics and added that it would be helpful as he would not always have the team every day.
The Italian Football Federation president Carlo Tavecchio was very appreciative towards the efforts of Conte for what he did with the team. He said he created a new culture in the squad. One that is of sacrifice and team effort, not one that serves individuals. There are concerns about the depth of experience of the new coach as he has mostly managed lower divisions except his one season at Napoli.