Rocca inspires Italy's peak performance

Italy may have failed to take home the silverware but coach Francesco Rocca can still consider their campaign in the Czech Republic as a mission accomplished.

Long haul
Rocca, assistant Gesualdo Piacenti and team manager Giancarlo Antognoni had stressed from the start of this UEFA European Under-19 Championship that the squad were here to play five matches – three in the group, a semi-final and a final. That they contested Saturday's decider in Jablonec, losing 3-1 to Germany, corroborated Rocca's assertion that his players had been prepared to last the distance.

World Cup place
The only disappointment was that a team trained to peak at the weekend could not quite scale the heights when it mattered most. Chances were missed by Alberto Paloschi and Stefano Okaka Chuka before Germany established a two-goal lead early in the second half. Silvano Raggio reduced the deficit with a 78th-minute header after the Azzurri had joined their opponents on ten men with Matteo Gentili's dismissal, only for Germany to strike again. Nonetheless, pre-tournament targets were achieved, not least a place at the 2009 FIFA U-20 World Cup in Egypt by virtue of finishing in the top three in the group. "Overall, we were very satisfied because we achieved two objectives – qualifying for the World Cup and getting through the group," said Rocca.

'Intelligence'
Italian progress in the competition looked unlikely when they trailed Greece until the 89th minute of their opening Group B match in Mlada Boleslav. Crucially, however, their second-half pressure finally paid off with the award of penalty which Paloschi tucked away. Rocca's side also struggled in the first half of their next game, against England in Jablonec. However, two elements which were central to their campaign came together after the interval to result in a brighter performance and a 0-0 draw. Rocca wanted his players to show "football or tactical intelligence", citing the need for "changes of formation within a match", and his half-time introduction of holding midfielder Raggio stopped English runners exposing Italy's centre-backs.

'Fitness'
Further, the coach stressed throughout the tournament his emphasis on fitness work – "because even if you have an off-day, you still have a chance". The way his side were able to stay in the England game, as well as the Greece one, and if anything get stronger over the 90 minutes, was testament to his careful planning. He spoke of his determination to "give Italian players at this age the right fitness and the right levels of physical stamina to compete against a team like England."

Key matches
Rocca's charges perhaps expressed themselves best in their third and final Group B fixture, won 4-3 against the Czechs in Mlada Boleslav. They went into the match requiring a victory to be sure of a semi-final slot and the extra urgency yielded two goals from Andrea Poli and further strikes by Giacomo Bonaventura and Paloschi. That success lifted Italy from third position to pole, earning a last-four meeting with Hungary. Rocca called the Hungarians "a strong, aggressive team", adding that "all the teams at this stage are top-quality sides". Italy's incremental improvement through the championship produced a 1-0 triumph in Plzen in a match in which Hungary hit the post late on. The decisive moment, however, had come on 65 minutes when Raggio's perfect through pass invited an equally sublime finish from Fernando Martin Forestieri.

'Hard work paid off'
So even if, in the final reckoning, Italy failed to get top marks, theirs was a fine effort. "The whole squad have been very committed and they have represented themselves and the country very well off the pitch as well," Rocca concluded. "On the field, the work we put in on the training ground in Rome paid off because we managed to get to the final. Our preparations were geared to getting us through those five games."