Mancini: 'During my time, 20-year-olds had 150 first team appearances'
The Italian national team boss has called up multiple youngsters to the national side for the upcoming UEFA EURO qualifiers. Mario Balotelli hasn't been called up but Moise Kean has earned a call-up.
Mancini was recently talking to Esquire and he talked about the Italian national team setup.
He said: "In Italy the final result is more important than how we get there. We have won for decades, with this mentality. But today football has changed. If you can't set up a team that plays well, you can't win continuously.
"The moment was difficult, many said that in Italy there were no players. But I think that Italy has always grown good players, even in difficult times. There were, however, and since they were also young you could try.
"To do something different. In my day, 20-year-old players already had 150 first-team appearances. They need to play more. Technically they are all good, but the experience is fundamental, especially the one you accumulate in international matches.
"The national team can do a lot for the Italian football movement, even call boys who nobody knows or who play in the lower series. It can help the clubs: I hope that, within a few years, we can return to see teams with 5-6 good Italians."