Honesty with past failures, Tonali: Our abilities will gradually emerge.

Italy will travel to Turkey for their second group stage match in Group A of the 2026/27 UEFA Nations League. At a press conference, Tonali stated that the players must honestly face past defeats and setbacks, and expressed his belief that the "Azzurri's" abilities will gradually emerge over time.

In the earlier first round of group matches, Italy was unable to change the situation after falling behind by two goals, and ultimately lost 0-2 to Belgium.

Italian midfielder Tonali said, "I think many people will be disappointed. We must honestly face everything that comes with this defeat, from the boos from the fans to the disappointed faces in the locker room. But we must accept the result because we really didn't play well, and we deserved to lose."

“The most important thing now is to respond, and we can do that within a few days. The atmosphere in this team is very healthy, and there are many young players. It’s not easy to have all the abilities right away, and we don’t have any so-called big-name stars.”

Tonali also said, "Time is our resource. We need to spend time together, train together, and enjoy football. We are all healthy and strong men. As time goes by, our abilities will gradually emerge."

Furthermore, Tonali, 26, joined Tottenham Hotspur in July. However, since the start of the 2026/27 Premier League season, Tottenham Hotspur have only managed 2 draws and 3 losses in 5 matches, currently sitting in 20th place in the standings.

Tonali said, "Football is a wonderful thing. Even within 10 days, everything can turn from negative to positive. Speaking of Tottenham Hotspur, it is indeed a difficult period in terms of results, but the performance we have put on is positive."

“We played well and were able to create chances, but in football, if you can’t score, you lose the game. But we haven’t been defeated yet; we remain energetic and maintain a positive attitude.”

Tonali also stated, "It's a completely different story when it comes to the national team. This is a very young team, a team that has never really played together before, and now we just need to give ourselves some time."

Image source: Internet