Gattuso ready to ‘put ego aside’ for new Italy tactical change to 3-man defence

ROME, ITALY – JUNE 19: The Italy new head coach Gennaro Gattuso attends the press conference at Hotel Parco dei Principi on June 19, 2025 in Rome, Italy. (Photo by Paolo Bruno/Getty Images)

Gennaro Gattuso discussed the possibility of changing his Italy tactics against Estonia and Israel, admitting he’s ready to ‘put my ego aside’ to pick a three-man defence if needed.

The Azzurri are still playing catch-up with Norway in the 2026 World Cup qualifying group, so cannot afford to slip up when visiting Estonia on Saturday, then hosting Israel at the Stadio Friuli next Tuesday evening.

You can read every word Gattuso said in his press conference here.

Gattuso knows Italy have work to do

The first two games under his tenure were high-scoring, as they swept Estonia aside 5-0 before a chaotic 5-4 victory over Israel.

“There are many things we need to fix. It’s not just about the defence, but about being able to sniff out danger in all areas of the pitch,” insisted Gattuso.

“At the same time, there are also many positives. We were the ones who allowed Israel back into the game and we were very lucky to take the result home. We’ve got to improve our attitude, it’s not about the tactical system.”

Luciano Spalletti switched between three and four at the back during his time in charge of Italy, but so far Gattuso has largely focused on the latter.

“A coach must be able to do it all, I have to set my ego aside and do what is best for the team. I don’t really like a three-man defence much, but that doesn’t matter, I will always choose the best system for these players.

“The situation has improved a lot from last month, as the players have more minutes in their legs.”

Conceding four goals against Israel, even if two of them were own goals, rang alarm bells about the state of Italian defending.

“In recent years, most defences have worked on reference points rather than sectors, so it’s a different type of training and you need to work on it,” noted Gattuso.

“We must try to find a middle ground, this is modern football. Playing this way, man-marking is more difficult.”

However, when it comes to the possibility of using two real centre-forwards together, the coach is more reticent.

“It would be madness to fiddle with something that worked well, but we’ll see what we get from the training sessions, seeing as today is the first.”