Spalletti: ‘Italy cannot miss out on World Cup in USA’ | OneFootball

Luciano Spalletti feels Italy fans in the United States put ‘pressure’ and motivation on the squad against Ecuador. ‘We cannot miss out on the 2026 World Cup.’

It kicks off at the Red Bull Arena at 20.00 GMT.

The Azzurri started their American tour by beating Venezuela 2-1 in Fort Lauderdale on Thursday with a brace from Genoa striker Mateo Retegui.

These are the warm-up matches for the Euro 2024 tournament in Germany this summer, but also an opportunity to get the Nazionale to an audience that they usually would not be close to.

“It’s impressive. Here you can sense the love for Italy,” said Spalletti in a press conference.

“There are people here who moved to America to make a life for themselves and now they give us back this love. It provides pressure and responsibility, but at the same time fires us up.”

The squad visited the Adidas store in 5th Avenue and was mobbed by supporters on Saturday, while the new kit was displayed on the iconic Times Square giant screens.

There are plans to push football in the United States, with the Club World Cup set to be staged there in the new expanded format in 2025, then the World Cup co-hosted by the USA, Canada and Mexico in 2026.

Italy failed to qualify for the last two editions of the World Cup, but Spalletti is hoping to end that run.

“The history of Italy in football is one of quality, we cannot miss out on the World Cup, but we also must not be presumptuous. All teams are strong now, they know the same tactics as the biggest nations and are all built to create champions.”