The defeat suffered by Brescia in their opening fixture of 2020 should take absolutely nothing away from the performance produced by youngster Sandro Tonali, who stood out through his tactical awareness and determination and the quality of his play.

At just 19 years old, he’s a regular fixture in every article written about the most talented youngsters in Europe. And he’s been on Roberto Mancini’s radar for a while too: a year ago, the Head Coach called Tonali up for a training camp to see him in action with his own eyes. While he was on the pitch against Lazio, he brought fluidity to Brescia’s play with his expert passing ability. He’s constantly improving at a rate that is unusual for his age.

Gianluigi Donnarumma is just one year older than Tonali, but we’re so used to seeing him that he can almost be considered a veteran. And the Italian goalkeeper was once again in fine form yesterday as he remained alert to deny Sampdoria and Gabbiadini on a number of occasions. It was a match where he once again displayed the great character he has despite playing in a side that has fallen below expectations up to this point.