Italy is one of the strongest football countries and has won the World Cup four times. However, in the 2018 Russian World Cup qualifiers, Italy failed to participate. This makes football fans around the world feel very sorry, and also plunges the Italian football world into grief. So why did Italy miss the World Cup?

The Italian national team’s tactical mistakes

First of all, the Italian national team’s tactical mistakes are one of the main reasons for missing the World Cup. In the 2018 Russian World Cup qualifiers, the Italian national team has been using a 4231 formation. This formation has achieved good results in the past, but it seems a bit outdated in this qualifier.

The core of the 4231 formation is the two midfielders. Their tasks are to defend and pass the ball. However, the shortcomings of this formation are also very obvious, that is, the midfield is too crowded and it is difficult to form an effective offense. In this qualifier, the Italian national team's midfielder often had broken links, resulting in low offensive efficiency.

The quality of players has declined

Secondly, the decline in the quality of the Italian national team's players is also one of the reasons for the Italian national team's failure to qualify for the World Cup. In the past, the Italian national team had many world-class stars, such as Baggio, Maldini, Del Piero and others. Their addition has greatly improved the strength of the Italian national team.

However, in recent years, the quality of the Italian national team's players has declined, and it is difficult to find world-class stars like Baggio, Maldini, and Del Piero. This has also led to a decline in the overall strength of the Italian national team, which is no longer able to shine in international football as it did in the past.

How to improve the strength of the Italian national team

So, how to improve the strength of the Italian national team so that they can once again stand out in international football?

First of all, the Italian national team needs to change their tactics and adopt more modern formations, such as 433, 343, etc. These formations emphasize fast passing and fast offense, which can better bring out the characteristics of Italian players and improve the offensive efficiency of the entire team.

Secondly, the Italian national team needs to strengthen youth training and cultivate more young players. The future of Italian football lies in young players. Only by continuously cultivating young players can the Italian national team perform better in future games.

End: Hope of reviving Italian football