Luciano Spalletti praises Italy’s ‘maturity’ in 2-1 Nations League win over Israel

BUDAPEST – Italy coach Luciano Spalletti praised his side’s “maturity” as Davide Frattesi and Moise Kean secured a 2-1 win over Israel in their Nations League Group A2 clash on Sept 9 at Bozsik Arena.

The Italians lead the standings on six points after they stunned France 3-1 in their opening game last week.

France are second on three points, level with third-placed Belgium, who they beat 2-0 in the group’s other game, while Israel are bottom without a point.

“It was a splendid game, because there were so many dangers that we talked about and we saw them tonight, especially in the first half,” Spalletti told RAI Sport.

“They sit deep, you might be tired and not make the right decisions, there is a lot of traffic in the middle, so it becomes difficult to find those passing channels.

“But the fact that my players were organised, and waited for the right moment was a sign of great maturity. In tactical terms, the lads did well to know their positions.

“They know where the other will be and we saw our passing (get) much better in the second half.”

Frattesi gave Italy the lead before the break, when he bundled the ball home with his chest from close range and Kean made it 2-0 from a rebound just after the hour mark.

Israel reduced the deficit in the 90th minute through Mohammad Abu Fani, who found the net from the edge of the box after the hosts, staging the game in Budapest, Hungary, for security reasons, won a free kick.

Italy deservedly took the three points but often appeared shaky compared to their powerful performance at Parc des Princes in Paris.

Spalletti made five changes to the side who defeated France, with Giacomo Raspadori and Kean starting up front in place of Lorenzo Pellegrini and Mateo Retegui.

Italy were also without defender Riccardo Calafiori, who missed out with a calf strain.

Frattesi, who was a doubt ahead of the clash, delivered quality throughout the game and opened the scoring for the Euro 2020 champions late in the first half, sending a Federico Dimarco pass into a bottom corner.

The 24-year-old, who also found the net in the win against France, remains the top scorer for Italy since Spalletti was appointed in August 2023 with six goals.

After Kean scored the second goal, Italy started moving with much more confidence and they were close to adding a third but Sandro Tonali’s low close-range strike was marginally offside.

Instead, Israel ensured a nervy ending when they pulled a goal back just before the final whistle as they continued to maintain a fair share of possession against their more experienced opponents.

The Israelis were defeated 3-1 by Belgium in Debrecen, Hungary, last week in their first-ever game in League A after they gained promotion to competition’s top tier, having won their League B group in 2022-23. REUTERS