Pellegrini Hoping to Fire the Azzurri to Further EUROs Glory

Whether you’re a glass-half-full or half-empty type of person will dictate whether you think Roma’s season was a success or not.

With the Serie A campaign at an end, attention now turns to EURO 2024 – where Italy will defend the title they won so memorably at Wembley Stadium three years ago.

A handful of Roma stars will take their place in the provisional Italy squad – including Lorenzo Pellegrini, whose outstanding season will hopefully be rewarded with a place in the Azzurri’s starting eleven in Germany.

Defending the Throne

Even the most passionate of Italy fans would admit that this isn’t the finest generation of talents – hence why Luciano Spalletti’s men have been so disregarded in the EUROs betting odds.

That EURO 2024 outrights betting market makes Italy nothing more than a 16/1 dark horse, behind – in descending order – England, France, Germany, Spain and Portugal.

It’s rare for a defending champion to be so disrespected, but this is not a vintage Italy squad – there’s no Bonucci, Chiellini, Immobile or Insigne this time around, as there was at EURO 2020.

Indeed, attacking options look particularly thin on the whole for the Azzurri, so there could well be a place for Stephan El Shaarawy in Spalletti’s line-up.

Pellegrini could also be an attacking force from midfield. He delivered eleven goal involvements during the Serie A campaign just gone, which includes finding the net eight times himself, while his ability to play centrally or off the left-hand side is the kind of versatility that head coaches crave in big tournament squads.

As well as El Shaarawy, Pellegrini could be joined in the final Italy squad by Gianluca Mancini, whose defensive solidity – and willingness to attack the ball at set pieces – could yet see him become a vital part of Spalletti’s plans too.

International Swansong

EURO 2024 could represent the final big tournament appearance of two Roma stars.

Rui Patricio has been named as one of the three goalkeepers in Portugal’s squad; at the age of 36, he will appreciate that this may be his last major international competition.

The same could be arguably said about Romelu Lukaku, who will be 33 by the time the World Cup rolls around in 2026.

The Belgian forward has still got the game – evidenced by his 20-goal season for Roma, but observers have noted that he’s perhaps not as mobile now as he once was. So this may be the final chance for him, alongside his vaunted Belgian teammates like Kevin de Bruyne and Leandro Trossard, to land that elusive major trophy.

Elsewhere, Angelino and Diego Llorente will be disappointed to have missed out on selection for Spain’s provisional EURO 2024 squad, while the same could be said for Rick Karsdorp – who evidently hasn’t done enough to convince Ronald Koeman he’s worthy of a call-up to the Netherlands camp.

So three Italians, a Belgian and a Portuguese will represent Roma at EURO 2024 – given that each of those nations is considered a dark horse for a deep run, perhaps there’s one last shot at glory for the Giallorossi this term.