Why Bologna manager Vincenzo Italiano deserves more credit than he gets | OneFootball

At the end of day’s play in Serie A on Saturday, Bologna found themselves at third in the table. Vincenzo Italiano’s side have played a game more than Inter, Milan and Roma but are just one point behind Napoli and the Nerazzurri.

While suggestions of a title charge are probably far-fetched, the Rossoblu’s season so far shows how Vincenzo Italiano deserves more credit than he gets.

Italiano’s system is clear to see

There are multiple reasons for why Italiano deserves plaudits but one key factor that has made him stand apart from other managers is his identity.

The ex-Spezia manager has always stood true to his setup, which involves high-pressing, playing quickly between the lines, centre-backs often coming into midfield and full-backs inverting. This has been the case at many clubs that he has managed and this has also made him a very good fit at Bologna.

At the Rossoblu, he has also shown adaptability than he previously did and this is making the stint better than the ones he has had in the past.

Overperforming on resources

Since he first began coaching, Italiano has over-performed on what he has. Adherence to a setup helps in that but results show it.

At Bologna – despite a European run to deal with, they are in the top four right now. Even last season, they managed Champions League fixtures with league fixtures and despite selling two key players, they sealed qualification to the Europa League.

At Fiorentina, Italiano took the club to two Conference League finals. While he didn’t win and this made many question him, he always kept La Viola competitive in the top eight. More notably, he helped Spezia stay in Serie A despite their lowly spending and them having players who had never played in the top-flight before. He had also taken them to the Serie A in the first place.

He also helped Trapani earn promotion to Serie B in the 2018/19 season, playing a key role in them finishing second in Serie C. 

Revolutionary ideas

Italian football has witnessed a fair amount of revolutionaries in the last few seasons. Maurizio Sarri was one who brought about a trend of possession-based football back in Calcio and when the Lazio manager’s ideas have faded, Italiano has revitalised the ideas.

He is much more flexible in shape than Sarri, as he uses a variety of shapes for numerical advantages. The ex-Chelsea manager is known to be a hardcore believer in the 4-3-3 but Italiano is more hyper-focused on his principles than shape. And since his hard lessons at Fiorentina, he has come a long way at Bologna. And this might just be beginning.

Kaustubh Pandey I GIFN