The Italian Gob: The Euros champions are in danger of early Euro 2024 exit if foul-mouthed boss Luciano Spalletti can’t keep his cool against Switzerland

Just an hour after Italy narrowly avoided an early exit from Euro 2024, Luciano Spalletti decided to go with the flow.

The coach of the Italian national team has always been a rough guy, but even for him, this time was especially acidic. Spalletti had objected to the suggestion that the switch to a 3-5-2 formation for the 1-1 draw with Croatia on Monday was the result of a “deal” with the players and launched into an expletive response.

‘How old are you?’ Spalletti asked the journalist, who was 51. ‘You’re 51, so you have 14 more fucking years to go until you’re 65, which is my age. ‘I talk to the players. I use my eyes and ears. What’s the problem? What kind of pact are you talking about?’

Spalletti is said to have phoned the journalist to apologise but it looked like a loss of control just when Italy need their coach to keep his cool.

No matter how much experience you have, there is nothing like leading your country in a major tournament. Spalletti is one of Italy’s best coaches and has handled high-pressure games at Roma, Inter Milan and Napoli, where he won the Serie A title for only the third time in the club’s history.

But now that 60 million pairs of eyes are on him, Spalletti is showing signs of cracking under the pressure. His outburst will be music to the ears of Switzerland, who can set up a possible quarter-final against England if they knock out the reigning champions in Berlin today.

Let’s not kid ourselves: Italy are scared by Murat Yakin’s Switzerland. Two draws between these nations (including penalties missed by Italy’s Jorginho in each game) allowed the Swiss to finish above the Italians in their qualifying group for the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.

Italy was eliminated in the play-off by North Macedonia and Switzerland reached the round of 16 of the final.

While Italy’s group run in Germany this month was tense, Switzerland’s was serene. The Swiss followed up a comfortable opening win over Hungary with draws against Scotland and Germany.

Their qualification was rarely in doubt, while Italy needed Mattia Zaccagni’s 98th-minute equalizer to secure progress. Without him, they would be home now.

“Italy are a team that never dies,” said Swiss midfielder Remo Freuler. “They are clearly the favourites and they can believe it. They beat us 3-0 during the group stage of Euro 2020, but I really think we have learned from that. We went to the World Cup and they stayed at home. It will be a special game, one of the three best I have played in my career in Switzerland.”

Yakin has a clear plan and his players follow his instructions to the letter. Compare that to Spalletti. So confident in his ideas during his career at the club, Spalletti suddenly seems unsure of the best way forward.

Will he stay in the 3-5-2 that left Federico Chiesa, the only Italian player who has won games, out of the starting team? Will he return to the 4-2-3-1/3-4-2-1 hybrid that gave good results against Albania but made him look ridiculous against Spain? Or will he come up with another system and cross his fingers?

If his team finds a way past Slovakia, most English fans would rather face Switzerland than Italy. However, if they look a little deeper, Italy might be preferable opposition, given the doubts Spalletti is battling.

All is not lost for Italy. They are in mid-table and have the mentality and tournament pedigree to come close again in Germany.

Perhaps playing today in Berlin, where Italy won the World Cup in 2006, will serve as inspiration. More than anything, Italy could use their coach to relax a bit.