Italiano: An outstanding coach who is seriously underestimated in Serie A

At the end of Saturday's Serie A match day, Bologna found themselves third in the league standings. Vincenzo Italiano's side are just one point behind Napoli and the Nerazzurri despite having played one more game than Inter Milan, AC Milan and Roma.

Although it may be too early to talk about title contention, the performance of the Red and Blues so far this season fully demonstrates that Vincenzo Italiano has received far less praise than he actually deserves.

Italiano's system is clearly visible

There are many reasons why Italiano deserves praise, but a key factor that distinguishes him from other coaches is his tactical identity.

The former Spezia coach has always been loyal to his tactical system: high press, quick passing and cutting, center backs often advance into the midfield, and full-backs move in. This has been implemented in many clubs he has coached, and it also makes him a perfect fit for Bologna.

In Bologna, he also showed a stronger adaptability than before, which makes his current coaching experience better than his past.

Exceeding performance with limited resources

Since the beginning of his coaching career, Italino has always been able to use existing resources to achieve results beyond expectations. Sticking to a tactical system helps, but the results speak for themselves.

In Bologna - despite having to deal with European competition, they are still in the top four of the league. Even last season, they juggled the Champions League schedule with the league and still locked in qualification for the Europa League after selling two key players.

During his time in Florence, Italiano led the team to the UEFA Europa League finals twice. Although his failure to win the championship caused him to be questioned a lot, he always kept Viola in the top eight competitiveness of the league. What is even more worth mentioning is that he helped Spezia, which had little investment at the time and had many players who had never played in the top league, successfully avoid relegation. Moreover, it was he who first led Spezia to Serie A.

He also helped Trapani to be promoted to Serie B in the 2018/19 season, playing a key role in the team's second place in Serie C.

Revolutionary ideas

In the past few seasons, Italian football has witnessed a considerable number of revolutionaries. Lazio coach Maurizio Sarri was one of the representatives who brought the possession-based football trend back to Serie A. And when the influence of Sarri's ideas waned, Italiano revived them.

He is much more flexible in formation than Sarri and will use a variety of formations to gain numerical advantage. The former Chelsea manager was known for his belief in a 4-3-3 formation, while Italiano was more focused on his tactical principles than on fixed formations. He has come a long way at Bologna since learning the hard way in Fiorentina. And this may be just the beginning.