Mancini Roberto

Roberto Mancini is an Italian football manager and former player. As a player, Mancini operated as a deep-lying forward, and was best known for his time at Sampdoria, where he played more than 550 matches, and helped the team win the Serie A league title, four Coppa Italia titles, and the European Cup Winners’ Cup. He was capped 36 times for Italy, taking part at UEFA Euro 1988 and the 1990 FIFA World Cup, achieving semi-final finishes in both tournaments, although he was never put onto the pitch during the 1990 tournament. In 1997, after 15 years at Sampdoria, Mancini left the club to join Lazio, where he won a further scudetto and Cup Winners’ Cup, in addition to the UEFA Super Cup and two more Coppa Italia titles. Alongside Gianluigi Buffon, he is the player with the most Coppa Italia titles (6). As a player, Mancini would often give team talks at half-time. Towards the end of his playing career he became an assistant to Sven-Göran Eriksson at Lazio. His first manager role was at Fiorentina in 2001, at only 36 years old, winning a Coppa Italia title. The following season, he took over as manager at Lazio, where he guided the club to another Coppa Italia title. In 2004, Mancini was offered the manager’s job at Inter Milan, with which he won three consecutive Serie A titles, a club record; he was dismissed in 2008. After being out of football for over a year, Mancini was appointed Manchester City manager in December 2009. He helped City win the FA Cup in the 2010–11 season, the club’s first major trophy in 35 years, and their first league title in 44 years in the 2011–12 season. Mancini took over managerial duties at Turkish club Galatasaray in September 2013, winning the Turkish Cup in his only season at the club, before returning to Inter Milan for two more years before managing Russian side Zenit. In 2018, he took charge of the Italian national team after Italy had failed to qualify for the 2018 FIFA World Cup. In 2021, Mancini guided Italy to their second-ever European Championship at Euro 2020. Under his management, Italy then failed to reach the World Cup for the second time in a row after a loss to North Macedonia. Regarded as a cup specialist, Mancini has reached at least a semi-final of a major national cup competition in every season he has been a manager, from 2002 to 2014. He holds a number of records, including most consecutive Coppa Italia finals from 2004 to 2008, with Lazio once in 2004 and with Inter Milan in the following four seasons.

Match Worn Boots


Lazio S.S.


Things to Know:

These boots were worn by Roberto Mancini during the seasons 1997/1998 and 1998/1999 with S.S.Lazio. With Lazio, Mancini won his second scudetto and Cup Winners’ Cup titles, as well as two more Coppa Italias. In the 1999–00 season, Lazio won the scudetto and Coppa Italia, but Mancini failed to score in 20 matches and later announced his playing retirement. He joined Lazio’s coaching staff as Sven-Göran Eriksson’s number two. In 2011, when asked about Mancini, Eriksson said: “I took him to Lazio with me and he wanted to be a manager even while he was a player. He was the coach, he was the kit man, he was the bus driver, everything. At Sampdoria he wanted to check that everything was in place before training. Sometimes I would have to tell him: ‘Mancio, you have a game to play on Sunday, you will be exhausted if you have to control everything.’ But he was like that.”

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Often described as a “fantasista” in the Italian sports media, Mancini was a creative and technically gifted forward, who was frequently deployed as a supporting striker alongside a centre-forward, or, on occasion, as an offensive playmaker in the attacking midfield or trequartista position later on in his career. A classic number 10 with creativity and vision, as well as accurate passing and finishing ability, he was capable of assisting many goals as well as scoring them himself, due to his eye for the final pass; he was also known for his excellent technique in the air and anticipation, which enabled him to execute spectacular volleys. As such, he was also capable of operating across the entire front-line, and was even deployed as a centre-forward or out–and–and striker on occasion, although this was not his favoured position, as he was primarily a generous team player who preferred creating chances for teammates over scoring goals. An elegant, classy, and skilful player, Mancini was also renowned for his flair, ball control, technical ability, and dribbling skills, as well as his change of pace, despite not being as quick as other players in his position; moreover, he was renowned for his tactical intelligence, which he developed over time. He frequently stood out because of this latter attribute, as well as due to his strong character and leadership qualities, which made him an effective captain for his teams. He was often a vocal presence on the football pitch, regularly organising and motivating his teammates, as well as discussing with opponents and arguing with referees. He was also highly regarded for his defensive work-rate off the ball, despite initially being criticised for his defensive contribution by manager Renzo Ulivieri in his early career. Mancini is regarded as one of the best Italian players of his generation, and as one of Italy’s greatest ever number 10s. However, despite his ability, he was also occasionally accused of being inconsistent in the media.

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Despite success at club level, Mancini never became a regular for Italy. At the under-21 level, Mancini was part of the team which reached the semi-finals in the 1984 UEFA European Under-21 Football Championship and finished runners-up in 1986. He made his international senior squad debut at the age of 19, under Enzo Bearzot, on 26 May 1984, in a 2–0 away win against Canada in Toronto; he later won 36 caps, and scored four goals for his country. Mancini was a starting player at Euro 1988, where Italy reached the semi-finals; during the tournament, he scored a goal in a 1–1 draw against hosts West Germany, in the opening match of the tournament on 10 June.[20] Mancini was also a non-playing member of Azeglio Vicini’s Italian squad that finished in third place at the 1990 World Cup on home soil. He was kept out of the side by competition from Gianluca Vialli, Salvatore Schillaci, Andrea Carnevale and Roberto Baggio. Mancini’s international career ended after a dispute with national team coach Arrigo Sacchi, when Mancini was upset because he would not be guaranteed a first team place at the 1994 World Cup. Fierce competition with other creative forwards for places in the starting line-up, such as Gianfranco Zola, Giuseppe Signori, Roberto Baggio and later Francesco Totti and Alessandro Del Piero, hindered his international opportunities, hastening his self-imposed exile from the Italian national team. On May 14th 2018 Mancini succeeded caretaker Luigi Di Biagio as manager of the Italy national team. He signed an incentive-based contract, which would run until 2020, extended automatically to 2022 if Italy was to qualify for Euro 2020. Italy failed to qualify for the 2018 FIFA World Cup under Gian Piero Ventura after a play-off defeat to Sweden six months earlier. It was the first time Italy had failed to qualify for a World Cup since the 1958 FIFA World Cup, and the first major tournament they missed since UEFA Euro 1992. Mancini shaped the national team differently. Three of his assistants, Alberico Evani, Attilio Lombardo and Fausto Salsano, played successfully with him at Sampdoria in the 1990s, as well as Gianluca Vialli. Vialli joined as head of delegation in October 2019 after fighting pancreatic cancer. Mancini’s team did not include only players from the big teams based in Milan, Rome or Turin. Out of the 26 players, nobody grew up the big metropolises. Half of them came from villages with fewer than 10,000 inhabitants: 10 from the north of Italy, 7 from the middle, and 9 from the south. On 28 May 2018, Italy won their first match under Mancini, a 2–1 victory in a friendly over Saudi Arabia. On 12 October 2019, Italy qualified for Euro 2020 with three matches to spare after a 2–0 home win over Greece. On 15 October, with a 5–0 away win over Liechtenstein, Italy won its ninth consecutive match under Mancini, equalling the record set by Vittorio Pozzo between 1938 and 1939. Italy won all of their Euro 2020 qualifying matches in Group J, and set an unprecedented record of 10 victories in a single calendar year in 2019. In May 2021, Mancini’s contract with the Italian national team was extended until June 2026. In June 2021, Italy was the only team in UEFA Euro 2020 to win all three group stage matches without conceding a goal; Italy had the best goal difference, the most shots, and the most attempted through-balls at the tournament. On 26 June 2021, with a 2–1 win over Austria, Mancini led Italy to a record 31-match unbeaten streak, surpassing the 30-match streak set by Pozzo. On 11 July, Mancini led Italy to a 3–2 victory on penalties over England in the final of the tournament at Wembley Stadium, following a 1–1 draw after extra-time; this was Italy’s second European Championship title after 1968. On 5 September 2021, Mancini led Italy to their 36th unbeaten match, surpassing the world record of 35 set by Brazil and Spain. The unbeaten run was extended to 37 matches three days later with a 5–0 home win over Lithuania, but the streak was ended the following month with a 2–1 home loss to Spain in the 2020–21 UEFA Nations League A semi-finals. On 10 October, Italy went on to win the 2020–21 UEFA Nations League bronze medal following a 2–1 home victory over Belgium. On 24 March 2022, Italy lost 1–0 at home to North Macedonia during the semi-finals of the 2022 World Cup qualification play-offs, failing to qualify for the 2022 FIFA World Cup, missing out on the tournament for the second consecutive time in their history. On 1 June, Italy were defeated 3–0 at Wembley Stadium by reigning Copa América champions Argentina in the 2022 Finalissima.

ITALY NATIONAL TEAM


EURO 2020


Team’s Neck Tie


Mancini Roberto


Did you Know?

This is the official Italy National team’s neck tie made for the team for the Uefa “Euro 2020” and given to Roberto Mancini. Mancini succeeded caretaker Luigi Di Biagio on 14 May 2018 as manager of the Italy national team. He signed an incentive-based contract, which would run until 2020, extended automatically to 2022 if Italy was to qualify for Euro 2020. Italy failed to qualify for the 2018 FIFA World Cup under Gian Piero Ventura after a play-off defeat to Sweden six months earlier. It was the first time Italy had failed to qualify for a tournament since the 1958 FIFA World Cup. Mancini shaped the national team differently. Three of his assistants, Alberico Evani, Attilio Lombardo and Fausto Salsano, played successfully with him at Sampdoria in the 1990s, as well as Gianluca Vialli. Vialli joined as head of delegation in October 2019 after fighting pancreatic cancer. Mancini’s team did not include only players from the big teams based in Milan, Rome or Turin. Out of the 26 players, nobody grew up the big metropolises. Half of them came from villages with fewer than 10,000 inhabitants: 10 from the north of Italy, 7 from the middle, and 9 from the south. On 28 May 2018, Italy won their first match under Mancini, a 2–1 victory in a friendly over Saudi Arabia. On 12 October 2019, Italy qualified for Euro 2020 with three matches to spare after a 2–0 home win over Greece. On 15 October, with a 5–0 away win over Liechtenstein, Italy won its ninth consecutive match under Mancini, equalling the record set by Vittorio Pozzo between 1938 and 1939. Italy won all of their Euro 2020 qualifying matches in Group J, and set an unprecedented record of 10 victories in a single calendar year in 2019. In May 2021, Mancini’s contract with the Italian national team was extended until June 2026. In June 2021, Italy was the only team in UEFA Euro 2020 to win all three group stage matches without conceding a goal; Italy had the best goal difference, the most shots, and the most attempted through-balls at the tournament. On 26 June 2021, with a 2–1 win over Austria, Mancini led Italy to a record 31-match unbeaten streak, surpassing the 30-match streak set by Pozzo. On 11 July, Mancini led Italy to a 3–2 victory on penalties over England in the final of the tournament at Wembley Stadium, following a 1–1 draw after extra-time; this was Italy’s second European Championship title after 1968. On 5 September 2021, Mancini led Italy to their 36th unbeaten match, surpassing the world record of 35 set by Brazil and Spain. The unbeaten run was extended to 37 matches three days later with a 5–0 home win over Lithuania, but the streak was ended the following month with a 2–1 home loss to Spain in the 2020–21 UEFA Nations League A semi-finals. On 10 October, Italy went on to win the 2020–21 UEFA Nations League bronze medal following a 2–1 home victory over Belgium.