Rugby Union - Six Nations Championship - Italy v Wales - Stadio Olimpico, Rome, Italy - February 8, 2025 Italy head coach Gonzalo Quesada before the match REUTERS/Guglielmo Mangiapane
ROME (Reuters) - Italy overcame difficult odds and made a major step forward with a disciplined victory over Wales in the Six Nations, their coach Gonzalo Quesada said after the 22-15 win on Saturday.
"Today is an important day for this squad. We played at home and had the pressure of starting as favourites and had to face a difficult match because of the weather because we are a team that likes to attack and play with the ball," Quesada told a news conference at a rainy Stadio Olimpico.
"This is a point of evolution for the team and that makes me very happy. With this weather, the game was played where it had to be played, with discipline the key.
"We had consistency and pragmatism to play a different type of rugby, which is not what we like, but it was the type of rugby that had to be played today," he added.
Quesada has made it clear in the past that improving Italy’s prospects is a long-term project. They avoided the wooden spoon in the last Six Nations and won two of their five fixtures for a first time.
"We are working on the mentality, the identity, emphasizing the ability to attack even without the ball in hand. This is an evolutionary process," he said.
Next up for Italy are France, who they narrowly failed to beat last year, in Rome on February 23.
"We haven't started looking at France yet but they will be a very different challenge because they are a team with different characteristics to Wales; they are heavy, but also slow in reloading," Quesada said.
"We’ll bring a lot of confidence and serenity, we have taken a big load off our shoulders with this win. Nobody expects us to do anything against France and this could yet prove an advantage for us."
(Writing by Mark Gleeson in Cape Town; Editing by Ed Osmond)
