FLORENCE (Italy) • Italy manager Roberto Mancini admitted that he accidentally started Francesco Acerbi ahead of Giorgio Chiellini for the Nations League game against Bosnia and Herzegovina because he was not wearing his spectacles.

The sides drew 1-1 in their opener in Florence on Friday, ending Italy's unprecedented run of 11 successive wins. But Mancini is taking the long view.

"There was a bit of tiredness but the boys did well. We just lacked a bit of inspiration," he said.

"The important thing is that the team played well, the draw doesn't change anything in the judgment of the performance."

Lazio centre-back Acerbi won his seventh international cap when Mancini failed to take a good look at the team sheet.

Edin Dzeko put the visitors in front when he fired into the roof of the net with a shot on the turn from a corner in the 57th minute in their League A Group One match.

Stefano Sensi equalised 10 minutes later with a deflected shot after Lorenzo Insigne pulled the ball back.

"It was my fault," Mancini told a press conference when asked about the player mix-up. "They showed me the line-up, I didn't have my glasses on and just said it was fine... It's not like we chose a goalkeeper rather than a defender, it's not a massive difference, but yes, it was an error."

Chiellini will now start against the Netherlands tomorrow.

Italy, playing their first match since beating Armenia 9-1 last November, won all 10 of their qualifying matches for Euro 2020 as well as a friendly against the United States for the longest winning run in their history. The gap of 291 days between fixtures was Italy's longest since 1945-46.

REUTERS