Italrugby, Gonzalo Quesada warns opponents

It could have gone decidedly better for Italrugby. The Italian men’s national team was placed in Group B of the 2027 Rugby World Cup in the group draw held in Australia, the venue for the next edition of the World Cup. The team led by Gonzalo Queseda will face South Africa, Georgia and Romania. For the second time in the World Cup group, Italy will find the reigning World Champions Springboks in the last two editions (in 2019 in Japan in the group with the Azzurri). For the third time Italrugby will meet Romania in the group stage – after 2007 and 2015 – while first ever precedent, within a World Cup, with Georgia.

Luca Giorgetti

The technical commissioner of the men’s national team commented on the iron round that the Azzurri will have to face at the upcoming World Cup at a press conference: “It will definitely be a challenging round for us and against three very physical opponents there are no reckoning to be made. It will be three battles for us, with Georgia as we know but also with Romania, a national team with a long history of meeting Italy. Three really physical opponents, and we can’t say that we have got a very easy situation: we will do our best in every match. And we won”t be an easy team to beat either.

“We have to be aware that Georgia has had in recent years only a couple of positions of difference from us– added the coach of Italrugby’Today Lelos are a great reality of rugby, it is a factor. We will have to prepare a challenge with a team of similar level to ours and trying to slow us down, not to let us express our qualities”. Despite the complicated draw, according to Quesada there&#8217s one detail that will be able to make a difference: “The order of these matches will be really important. I have in mind what would be my ideal order, but I am keeping that observation” at the moment.

“Thinking about the next World Cup already gives me goosebumps – added Michele Lamaro. Thinking back to that mood that some of us have already experienced in 2023 is certainly very nice. For us, however, it is a thought we see far away at the moment: this weekend we are in South Africa facing an important challenge with Benetton“. Lamaro followed the draw from the gathering with Benetton Rugby, South Africa, engaged in European competitions: “We were moving from the gym to the field and here in South Africa a couple had internet to be able to keep us all updated. It will be especially for us scrum-halves a good challenge against the South African packs, Georgia and Romania”.