For certain teams and certain players, an international break, as tiring as it may be, can represent a perfect situation to get away from a gloomy and stressful daily life at the club. For Gianluigi Donnarumma, recently at fault in the Champions League on the winning goal for Atlético de Madrid at the Parc des Princes, the next two weeks could well do him the greatest good. Even if he is still an executive in the Parisian locker room and an experienced player as captain of the Italian selection, best player of Euro 2020 and former boss of AC Milan, his Parisian adventure seems to have as many ups as downs. . His lack of regularity and real progression since his professional debut at the age of 16 calls everything into question and criticism is piling up in the French press. His performances in Ligue 1, far from the big luxurious spotlights of the Champions League, are as good as ever, but when it comes to saving his team from European disillusionment, the native of Castellammare di Stabia seems to lose his footing. PSG supporters still remember his individual errors against Real Madrid two years ago, Newcastle and FC Barcelona last season and more recently Arsenal this year.
If the Italian goalkeeper has gone through several periods of questioning, even crisis, at PSG, this is not the case in the national team where Luciano Spalletti continues to praise him at each break: “Donnarumma is a perfect captain because he has had every experience imaginable. Since his childhood, he was predestined, because he already had an imposing physique, which is an important quality in his position. Being in the spotlight, taking responsibility, and playing for an important club, all of this shaped him before any other player. Now he has become an international and very strong goalkeeper. He is a true captain, always smiling, who loves everyone. He is the first to be unhappy when things don’t go as planned. So, we will keep him as a player but also as captain», insisted the former Napoli coach again last September. If Parisian observers and journalists criticize the level of Gianluigi Donnarumma, the situation is not quite the same within the Italian national team.
A mistake that scandalizes Paris
Despite everything, Luciano Spalletti has never hidden his determination to make his goalkeeper-captain better by pointing out his faults in his kicking game, while reminding him on several occasions of the level of other goalkeepers called up for the national team such as ‘Alex Meret of Napoli, Guglielmo Vicario of Tottenham. Without forgetting the very good Michele Di Gregorio who is not even called up regularly yet despite his very good performances. A way to poke the PSG goalkeeper in his ego and remind him that nothing is ever a given: “In my opinion, if they move Donnarumma from PSG, he will find a stronger team. I don’t fear that his level would drop if he had to make decisions that concern his future. In this regard, he must be vigilant because in Italy we have very good goalkeepers like those in our group, (Guglielmo) Vicario and (Alex) Meret», had also explained the coach before Euro 2024, when Paris Saint-Germain had formalized the arrival of the Russian goalkeeper, Matvey Safonov, who thus brought in new competition with Arnau Tenas. In Italy, the place of Gianluigi Donnarumma is still far from being called into question, even if the Italian goalkeeper had installed certain doubts in the minds of Italian fans just a year ago.
But after his impeccable Euro 2024 where he made a total of 16 saves, 7 aerial exits, 6 ground duels and 1 penalty saved throughout the competition until the elimination in the round of 16 against Switzerland, the confidence is more present than ever in the Nazionale for Gigio. Today, indisputable captain of the Nazionale, the PSG goalkeeper often speaks and defends his coach and the young people who make up the group, at a time when Italy is working hard to participate again in a World Cup after remaining at the dock during the last two editions (Russia 2018 and Qatar 2022): “The coach is very good, he really manages to teach football, to prepare matches well and I am very happy to work with him. I think he is a perfect coach for our national team, for the growth of our national team. We are a very young group, so we have to grow, gain experience and I think the coach is the best coach and the best person we can have at the moment», Recently affirmed Donnarumma at the microphones of Sportmediaset. Leadership, confidence, performance… This break away from the Eiffel Tower will do Gianluigi Donnarumma good.
