Spalletti To Revise Italy's Strategy Following Spain Defeat

Luciano Spalletti is determined to guide Italy back to form against Croatia on Monday, following their defeat to Spain. Spain clinched the top spot in Group B with a 1-0 victory over Italy on Thursday, courtesy of Riccardo Calafiori's own goal in the 55th minute. Despite the close scoreline, Italy struggled offensively, managing just four shots, with Unai Simon making only one save.

Spalletti had retained the same starting line-up from their comeback win over Albania but utilised all five of his substitutions by the 64th minute. The head coach admitted that even this was not soon enough for his team but remains confident that Italy will rebound on Monday.

"Of course, after a game like that, there is the notion and the idea to change the team a little bit," Spalletti said. "I probably made mistakes in not mixing things up quicker in terms of the performance we produced, but I thought it would be a gamble to tweak anything because we saw everything that had been said in recent times."

He acknowledged that fatigue and rustiness were factors in their recent results and indicated that changes would be made for the upcoming match against Croatia.

Italy knows that a win will secure second place in the group. However, a defeat could either eliminate them immediately if Albania beats Spain or leave them waiting to see if they can advance as one of the best third-place teams.

"There are certain matches which ultimately dictate whether it's been a great tale or a tale to forget, so the glory of your tale comes down to matches such as this," Spalletti added. "Talk is cheap; you've got to go out there and walk the walk. We said things we weren't able to exhibit against Spain; we need to walk the walk and leave talk to one side."

Final preparations are underway for Italy as they gear up for their crucial encounter with Croatia. Fans and analysts alike will be watching closely to see how Spalletti's tactical adjustments play out on Monday.