Barella feels 'incomplete' after Italy failures
Nicolo Barella says Italy's failure to reach the World Cup during his international career makes him feel "incomplete".
Barella was part of the Italy squad that won Euro 2020, beating England on penalties to secure their first European Championship crown since 1968.
However, he was also in the squad when Italy failed to qualify for both the 2022 and 2026 World Cups, losing in the play-offs both times.
Most recently, they finished second in their qualifying group behind eventual quarter-finalist Norway, going on to lose to Bosnia-Herzegovina in a penalty shoot-out in their play-off final.
Barella highlighted his ambition to one day feature at the World Cup with Italy, while noting he has already been on a rollercoaster during his international career.
"What I want most of all with the Azzurri is to go to the World Cup at least once and compete for it," he told Gazzetta.
"My national team journey started with winning a European Championship, and then I found myself not playing in two World Cups. An incredible start followed by a decline. This leaves me feeling incomplete."
Inter finished the Serie A season on a 10-game unbeaten streak on its way to the Scudetto, also winning the Coppa Italia.
Barella noted that Italy's failure to qualify for the World Cup helped spur him on to reach his best form at club level.
"That run of form came after the disappointment of failing to qualify for the World Cup," he said. "When you hit rock bottom, and for me, it was the second time I'd lost a play-off, you can only climb back up.
"Various thoughts went through my head. Then, together with my team-mates, we tried to think positively.
"Without keeping everything bottled up anymore, I realised I shouldn't let what had happened affect me, regardless of how bad it was.
"I rolled up my sleeves after those months following the lost Champions League final and that World Cup disappointment."
Barella initially joined Inter on loan for the 2019-2020 season before making his move permanent at the end of that campaign.
He has made 335 appearances for Inter in all competitions, scoring 28 goals, and has won nine major titles: three Scudettos, three Coppa Italias and three Supercoppa Italianas.
He has also helped the Nerazzurri reach two Champions League finals, though they both ended in defeat, versus Manchester City in 2023 and Paris Saint-Germain in 2025.
"I imagine staying here forever, but it depends on how quickly I age," he said of his Inter future. "I never even thought about becoming vice-captain. I would like to become, for example, the player with the most appearances in this shirt, but I'm not thinking about it.
"When I arrived here, I simply said to myself: I'm going to play for Inter to give everything and win everything. I could have done even better, but I'm proud of the journey so far."
