Southampton striker Graziano Pelle has claimed that he can only blame himself for failing to break into the Italy squad in the past.

An eye-catching run of form in the Netherlands with Feyenoord, followed by an impressive start to life in the Premier League with the Saints has seen Pelle included in Antonio Conte's most recent squad, but he refuses to be bitter about how long the call-up has taken.

"I am a positive guy," the 29-year-old told reporters. "It's rare that I put the blame on someone else for something that didn't go well.

"If so much time has passed since my last Italy call-up, it means it was entirely my fault. I am now completely mature, both physically and psychologically.

"I had to take the long way round, but I got here eventually. It's better late than never."

Italy continue their Euro 2016 qualifying campaign against Azerbaijan on Friday, before meeting Malta on Monday.

Written by
Callum Mulvihill