The Ciro Immobile Italy conundrum remains unsolved.
Prolific and irreplaceable at Lazio yet at times exasperating and ineffective for the Azzurri.
The epic European Championship quarter-final victory against Belgium provided a fresh set of lowlights as evidence.
As Inter midfielder Nicolo Barella showed tenacity and technique to send Italy ahead against the Belgians, Immobile was on the floor feigning injury. The 31-year-old rose to his feet unscarred, pausing to check if anyone had noticed before joining the celebrations. It was an unedifying moment which has already been replayed ad nauseum (particularly by one sneering British national broadcaster) and is hardly worth discussing in further detail.
The only consolation was that he suffered no lasting damage in colliding with Jan Vertonghen, especially after the devastating, tournament ending injury sustained by Leonardo Spinazzola later in the last eight tie.
However it was a regrettable incident in a puzzling performance of indecisiveness; poor decision making, one or two touches too many at critical moments and barely an effort on goal.
Immobile is the focal point for his club, every attack revolves around him and his goalscoring record is comparable with any of Europe’s best strikers. This is not the case for the national team and he has never fully convinced, despite an adequate return of 15 goals from 50 games. Whether it’s a sufficient ratio for a player that finds the net with such assured regularity in Serie A is still a point of debate. Nevertheless, the former Borussia Dortmund forward is likely to lead the line again when the Azzurri face Spain in Tuesday’s semi-final at Wembley.
It seems unlikely Roberto Mancini will shuffle his pack, with Andrea Belotti the only real alternative, giving Immobile another opportunity to prove the doubters wrong on the grandest of stages.
He has already scored twice at Euro 2020 in the group stages, reacting quickly to side foot home against Turkey and firing in from outside the penalty area as Italy stylishly dismissed Switzerland.
The Lazio attacker did strike the post in the round of 16 as the Azzurri struggled to overcome Austria but his efforts were negligible thereafter.
An enthralling last eight win against the world’s number one ranked team contained all the hallmarks of Mancini’s Italy. A full repertoire of spectacular Gianluigi Donnarumma saves, Giorgio Chiellini and Leonardo Bonucci’s peerless leadership, the tireless running and determination of Barella and Roberto Insigne’s brilliant trademark curler.
Immobile’s contribution was highlighted for all the wrong reasons and it is imperative he returns to his instinctive, decisive best if Italy are to seal a place in the Euro 2020 final.
A version of this article appeared on the Football Italia website on Monday, July 5, 2021
Immobile’s Italy conundrum remains unsolved
Stephen Kasiewicz 