Roberto Mancini Says Italy Can Win Euros Even If It Is Postponed to 2021

Roberto Mancini has said Italy can still win the UEFA European Championship, even if it postponed from this summer to 2021 due to the coronavirus outbreak.

An emergency UEFA meeting will take place on Tuesday, and one of the discussion points will be whether to postpone Euro 2020, per Dan Roan of BBC Sport.

The Europe-wide tournament is set to take place between June 12 and July 12. Italy are scheduled to kick off proceedings with the opening Group A game against Turkey at Rome's Stadio Olimpico.

Mancini said he had all but picked his squad for the tournament, but he believes Italy can still go all the way in 2021 if it is postponed, per Rai Sport (h/t Goal's Stephen Creek):

"I don't know how it will end. But there are more important things than Euro 2020, without a doubt.

"If they postpone the tournament, we can win even in a year. The important thing is the health of everyone and that we can all return to the stadium and enjoy ourselves. Seeing people die in these last few days is hurting us too much.

"I had a fairly safe list of players called. It was ready with only a few doubts to decide at the last minute. However, if the tournament is suspended for a year, there will be a few changes. We have to wait to Tuesday to understand if UEFA will decide to postpone Euro 2020. The problems we have had in Italy in the last 15 days will now be seen in other countries."

Italy has been one of the worst affected countries in the coronavirus outbreak, which had infected more than 152,000 people worldwide as of Sunday, per CNN.

As with many of Europe's other top leagues, there was no Serie A action over the weekend:

Per Caesars Palace, Belgium and England are the current favourites for Euro 2020. 

Italy are among the front-runners, though, after easing though their qualifying group with 10 wins out of 10. Belgium were the only other side with a perfect record.

The Azzurri's last match in November ended in a 9-1 victory over Armenia in Palermo.

Their friendlies against England and Germany later this month have been cancelled. UEFA's meeting on Tuesday could then have an impact on further warm-up games against San Marino and Czech Republic.

Italy have been on an upward trajectory since Mancini took charge in 2018 in the wake of the Azzurri's failure to qualify for the 2018 FIFA World Cup.

They are unbeaten since September 2018, a run of 14 matches, and will likely be well backed for the Euros, no matter when it takes place.