New Italy coach Giampiero Ventura says Marco Verratti "proved himself" in an attacking role as the Azzurri opened their World Cup qualifying campaign with a 3-1 win in Israel on Monday.
Verratti was instrumental in Italy's 14th-minute opener, playing a good pass to pick out Luca Antonelli on the wing, whose short cross found Graziano Pelle to tap home.
"People said Verratti couldn't play in that role, but he proved himself a player of great value," Ventura told Rai Sport. "He was out for a long time due to injury and proved how important he is to this team."
Italy held on with 10 men for the final 35 minutes after Giorgio Chiellini was sent off for the first time in his international career, but Ventura said he was pleased with how his side handled the setback.
"Clearly being down to 10 men in a World Cup qualifier is difficult," he said. "We had a 10-minute blackout after Chiellini's dismissal, but that was about it."
Ventura was a winner in his first competitive match after dropping a friendly to France last week, and he said Italy have plenty of room to improve.
"If we are convinced that we are a team in all arenas, we must show courage always," he said.
"I won't say our performance was perfect, as we conceded that goal similar to the one we let in against France. We worked as a team, suffered as a team and won as a team.
"I hope in a month against Spain that we'll be in better shape physically and can therefore play better than tonight."
Chiellini, who will miss the match against Spain through suspension, acknowledged his rough game with a message on Twitter.
"A bad night for me, fortunately our group was terrific and took home the three points," he wrote.
Una serata no per me, per fortuna il nostro gruppo è stato formidabile portando a casa i tre punti. #IsraeleItalia
- Giorgio Chiellini (@chiellini) September 5, 2016
Pelle said the performance showed the team's willingness to fight for their new boss.
"We are pleased with the new staff and the coach Ventura," Pelle said. "We were aware how hard this match would be, we were focused until the end. Their goal galvanised them, but we showed we are a team that even with 10 men fights to the end."
Ciro Immobile, who scored after coming on as a second-half substitute, added: "This morning Ventura had told me that I could score because he had seen me do well in training. With him I have a special relationship, both personal and professional.
"This is a victory that means a lot, because ours is a tough group."