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 | Mancini on returning to the Italian national team: It would be a big challenge. I would like to win the World Cup - this is my only duty towards the fans31-10-2025 |
Roberto Mancini spoke about the prospects of returning to the Italian national team. Earlier, Luciano Spalletti announced his departure from the Italian national team, which he led since the summer of 2023. In the last match under his leadership, the team lost to Norway (0:3) in qualifying for the 2026 World Cup. Mancini worked for the national team from 2018 to 2023.
– Have you ever thought that when the national team is closer to the playoffs than to directly qualifying for the World Cup, it would also be quite risky for you to sit on that bench again?
– That it would be a great challenge, no doubt. Also quite risky, yes. But sometimes you have to take risks, don`t you?
– Would you return sooner because you feel you have an unfinished mission for the Italian fans, or because of the dream of winning the World Cup?
– The only duty I feel towards the fans is precisely this: as I have always said, I would like to win the World Cup.
– You`ve talked about this many times. Would you do it again?
– When I started, in 2018, I said that I wanted to win the European Championship. They called me crazy: it seemed like a utopia, they talked about Italy as the seventh or eighth contender.
We won, reaching the semi-finals and final on penalties? And didn`t Argentina win the World Cup, beating the Netherlands and France on penalties? Our journey lasted four years, consisted of victories and records, this is not an accident, ” said Mancini.