IN the wake of his side’s thrilling semi-final win over Spain, Roberto Mancini was asked to reflect on the fact that he had guided Italy to the final of Euro 2020 just three years after his nation had suffered the ignominy of failing to even qualify for the World Cup in Russia.

“Almost no one believed we could do it, and yet we are into the final,” said Mancini. His words highlight how far his Italian side have come, but the key word amongst them is “almost”. He might have been starting from an extremely low base, but Mancini was always confident that the events of 2018 were a blip rather than proof of a more deep-rooted malaise.

That is not to downplay the trauma of missing out on Russia after a play-off defeat to Sweden, but the end of Gian Piero Ventura’s disastrous reign in May 2018 at least provided Italian football with an opportunity to make a fresh start.

The old guard, led by the likes of Gianluigi Buffon, Andrea Barzagli and Daniele De Rossi, headed into retirement, and when his appointment was confirmed in the summer of 2018, Mancini pledged to put his faith in youth.

“I want young talent, passion and trust,” Mancini said at the time. “I still think Italian football provides some of the best players in the world. That is why I feel so positive going into this job. I just have to show faith and wait for the players.”

From the word go, Mancini has looked to promote and nurture a new generation, a stance that has obvious parallels to the approach Gareth Southgate has adopted with England in the last five years.

One of Mancini’s first moves was to install young Milanese goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma as his number one – it is no coincidence that Donnarumma’s performances have been a key factor in Italy’s run to the final. Juventus starlet Federico Chiesa and Inter Milan youngster Nicola Barella were also early beneficiaries of Mancini’s desire for youth, and like Donnarumma, they have been influential figures in the last few weeks.

Not all of Mancini’s early moves paid off – he named Nicolo Zaniolo in his first squad before he had even played a first-team game for Roma, but has rarely picked the 21-year-old since – but the template had been set. A core of experienced campaigners were still important – most notably centre-halves Giorgio Chiellini and Leonardo Bonucci, who remain as effective as ever – but this was going to be a new-look Italian side determined to avoid the mistakes of the recent past.

There were some early hiccups, with Mancini’s first game ending in a scrappy 2-1 win over Saudi Arabia before France condemned his new-look side to a 3-1 defeat, but October 2018’s Nations League defeat to Portugal proved a seminal moment. Remarkably, Italy have not lost since.

Tuesday’s penalty shoot-out win over Spain extended Italy’s unbeaten run to 33 matches – a national record – with Mancini’s side going from strength to strength.

There are elements of the ‘old Italy’ in the way his team plays, most notably when it comes to their defensive strength and the tendency of both Chiellini and Bonucci to just about stay on the right side of the law when it comes to dealing with opposition forwards. Jorginho, who converted the winning penalty on Tuesday, is a crucial figure at the base of midfield.

However, whereas previous Italian teams would like to triumph via their defensive strength alone, Mancini has assembled a side with potent attacking weapons. They press as effectively and energetically as any side at the tournament, and look to break with pace and numbers when the opportunity allows.

Federico Chiesa’s goal against Spain at Wembley was a perfect illustration of Mancini’s attacking template, with Donnarumma’s distribution sparking a lightning counter-attacking raid that saw four Italian players pouring across the halfway line before the Spanish defence had an opportunity to get itself reset.

Italy attacked superbly in the first half against Belgium in the quarter-finals, having laid down a marker in their first game at the Euros, a 3-0 win over Turkey in which Lorenzo Insigne was all-but-unplayable. In Insigne, Chiesa and Ciro Immobile, Italy boast a forward line that is more than capable of hurting England.

They have also rediscovered that legendary Italian winning mentality. Austria pushed them hard in the last 16, but they found a way through in extra-time. Spain outplayed them for long periods of Tuesday’s game, but when push came to shove, it was Italy’s penalty takers who held their nerve.

“There are games where you have to suffer,” said Mancini, in response to Tuesday’s win. “They can’t all be as smooth as our progress so far. We knew it would be tough. That is why the players and everyone who worked with us over the last three years deserve great credit, because it wasn’t easy.”

It has been a challenging few years for Italian football, but redemption will arrive when Mancini’s side walk out at Wembley tomnorrow. If they can make it 34 games without defeat, they will be European champions once more.