(ANSA-AFP) - MILAN, MAR 31 - As Italian football fans worry that their national team might miss out on a third straight World Cup in Tuesday's play-off decider with Bosnia and Herzegovina, moves are afoot to take the Azzurri back to the top. Announced earlier this month, the Italian Football Federation (FIGC) has launched a project for youth football in a country which once produced some of the world's very best players but hasn't done so for a generation. The team that will line-up in Zenica lacks the star power of years gone by, such as Alessandro Del Piero, Andrea Pirlo, Fabio Cannavaro or Francesco Totti who won Italy the World Cup in 2006. The feeling of being left by the wayside was exacerbated by dreadful performances on the continent this season by Italy's top clubs and the continuation of a golden age for the country in a host of other sports. On Sunday tennis star Jannik Sinner cruised to victory at the Miami Masters, yet another win for the four-time Grand Slam champion who at the age of 24 is the dominant force in men's tennis alongside Spanish rival Carlos Alcaraz. Kimi Antonelli and Marco Bezzecchi lead the Formula One and MotoGP championships, while alpine skier Federica Brignone's double gold at the Winter Olympics the highlight of a record-breaking medal haul of 30. Even the rugby union team is more a source of national pride than the footballers thanks to a historic win over England in the Six Nations. So the FIGC, after years of criticism from media and fans alike, has decided for grassroots reform and deeper involvement in youth football across the country. "Everyone who's played for the national team started out in neighbourhood clubs. That means that every coach in charge of these kids has to be trained," former Italy midfielder Simone Perrotta tells AFP. Now 48 years old, Perotta, who spent the majority of his club career at Roma, played alongside Del Piero and Totti in that talent-packed Italy team two decades ago (ANSA-AFP).