Pio Esposito scored twice as Italy beat France 3-1 in the Nations League on Thursday, earning their first victory over Les Bleus on home soil in 64 years.
The 21-year-old forward, once tipped as Italy’s next great centre forward, took his tally to nine goals for the Azzurri in just 14 matches. His performance also helped to erase some of the memories of Italy’s World Cup playoff defeat to Bosnia and Herzegovina.
A penalty with personal weight
Esposito’s second goal came from the penalty spot in the 75th minute, sealing the result. It was the first spot kick he had taken since missing one in the penalty shootout defeat to Bosnia and Herzegovina, which saw Italy fail to qualify for a third straight World Cup.
“When I stepped up to the penalty spot, that memory came back to me, but I couldn’t hide for the rest of my life. You have to summon the courage to take them,” Esposito said.
The spot kick carried extra significance. His older brother, Sebastiano, had missed a penalty 15 minutes earlier, when the score was still 1-1.
“There was also an added responsibility: to make people forget my brother’s mistake,” Pio said. “When he made that mistake, it was tough for me, too, and I had to seal the result for his sake as well.”
A family affair on the bench
Italy coach Roberto Mancini appeared as surprised as most at San Siro when Sebastiano stepped up to take the earlier penalty, which he blazed wide. After the match, Mancini confirmed that Pio was top of the penalty takers’ list, with Sebastiano second.
“It was a family thing,” Mancini said with a smile.
When Italy won the second spot kick, Mancini turned to Sebastiano, who had already been substituted, on the bench and jokingly asked whether he wanted to take that one too. Both laughed.
A rapid rise
Esposito’s progress has been remarkable. He was playing in Serie B, on loan at Spezia, until the start of last season, before a breakout campaign back at Inter Milan.
The crowd of nearly 71,500 at San Siro gave him a standing ovation when he was substituted in stoppage time.
Esposito could also be the forward who eventually takes over Gigi Riva‘s crown as Italy’s all-time record scorer. Riva’s mark of 35 goals has stood for 52 years.
“We hope he can score a lot more, because it’s been a lifetime that Gigi Riva is at the top,” Mancini said. “We hope someone surpasses him for the good of the national team.
“Certainly Pio has a great score at the moment, compared to the matches played.”
What comes next
Italy’s next match is away to Belgium, where the Azzurri can seal their place in the quarter-finals as group winners. Italy lost at home to Belgium in Mancini’s first match back in charge, but the team has looked transformed since then.
“I am happy that I and we are doing well,” Pio said.