It’s time for Roberto Mancini’s ‘new old Italy’

Roberto Mancini is back on the training ground, gesticulating, directing, smiling and huffing, with his tuft of hair whiter and less tousled than it used to be. He has donned the Azzurri colours once more following the Malagoni-style drama and, in his own way, is convinced that this will be a great adventure, just as the first one was, at least in part. He will be back in a stadium tonight, at the Olimpico in Rome, for the opening match of the Nations League. He will face Belgium, led by Mark van Bommel, who is also making his debut.

He will take on the challenge at the helm of a national team for which he has tailored a new kit – a somewhat cobbled-together version of the old one – by piecing together the very best fabric he has at his disposal. He was asked to bring about a revolution, but Roberto Mancini set that aside, opting instead for a restoration. He knows full well – having spent many years on the bench – that there is nothing more fleeting than a revolution when the foundations and the time to put it into practice are lacking. In a few months, little can be changed – almost nothing – especially if there is no willingness to take a leap of faith. As we have seen, neither Serie A, nor Serie B, nor the Football Association was prepared to do so. Revolutions start from the bottom up, but if those at the grassroots prefer not to upend the status quo, then one might as well adapt to the old ways, simply giving them a fresh coat of paint.

Roberto Mancini is starting afresh from what he describes as his redeemed ‘sin’ – his high-profile move to Saudi Arabia. They will never forgive him if he fails to win, even though three years have passed. What are three years in football? A mediocre European Championship, another World Cup missed out on, and a disheartened Azzurri side.

Roberto Mancini is starting afresh from a situation where a few good players are running and kicking the ball in the provinces, there is a striker who plays – reasonably well – for a big club, and more than a few lads have chosen to make their mark abroad, in leagues that are richer and more appealing than our rather dreary Serie A. And who knows, perhaps that’s a good thing. Perhaps a national team composed of players based abroad will find the desire to run their hearts out and give their all for a national side that, in Italy, is seen more as a burden than an asset.

There is time for a revolution; there is always time in our country. Meanwhile, the restoration of the Ancien Régime is unfolding, as fresh and elegant as it has always been, just as the national team manager has managed to reinvent himself time and again throughout his many careers as a coach.