Conte at the helm of Italy national team
Although many fans and members of the media were initially critical of Conte's tactics and the level of the Italian squad chosen for the competition, Italy opened the tournament with a promising 2–0 victory over the number 1 ranked European team Belgium on 13 June; following the win, Conte drew praise from the media for the team's unity, defensive strength, and for his tactical approach to the match, which impeded Belgium from creating many goalscoring opportunities.
Conte led Italy out of the group to the Round of 16 with one game to spare on 17...