Italy National Football Team Formation

Starting Lineup

Donnarumma (1) · Calafiori (5) · Mancini (15) · Buongiorno (4) · Spinazzola (3) · Tonali (8) · Ricci (6) · Bellanova (13) · Pafundi (10) · Kean (11) · S. Esposito (9)

Italy focuses on a direct and vertical style of play through a 3-5-2 formation. This lineup is built to dominate the central areas while using wide players to stretch the defense. The Azzurri want to win the ball high up the pitch and move forward with speed to catch the opposition off guard.

Donnarumma protects the goal with his ability to stop shots and command the penalty area. The back line features Mancini, Buongiorno, and Calafiori. Mancini holds the line in the center to organize the unit. Buongiorno is dominant in the air on the right side of the back three. Calafiori acts as a ball playing defender on the left and can step into midfield to play out from the back. This defensive unit can shift to maintain a compact block or drop into a low block to deny the turn to attackers.

The midfield is led by a trio that connects the defense to the attack. Tonali plays a deep role to shield the defense and uses his passing range to switch play. Ricci works to win the second ball and carry the ball forward into the attacking third. Pafundi operates as an attacking ten behind the strikers to find space between the lines. Spinazzola and Bellanova act as attacking wing backs to provide width and overlap the midfielders to reach the byline.

The attacking phase relies on two forwards in a partnership. Kean plays as a pressing centre forward to disrupt the opposition back line. S. Esposito works to link up play and find the feet of the striker. The team builds attacks by using the wing backs to get to the byline and cut it back for players arriving late into the box. They look to hit in behind on the transition to isolate defenders in one on one situations.

A major advantage for Italy is the ability to create wide overloads through the movement of the wing backs. The central group of Tonali, Ricci, and Pafundi provides numerical superiority in the middle of the pitch. This allows the team to recycle possession and control the tempo of the game while squeezing the space.

This 3-5-2 formation is built for control and verticality. It is best used when playing against teams that allow space in the wide channels.