Warren Gatland made a startling assertion yesterday, one that will reverberate around the world of rugby for some time and may come back to haunt him. Gatland, a New Zealander who coached at regional and national level in Ireland and successfully at London Wasps before his appointment as Wales head coach in November, said that the level of skills shown by the Wales players was higher than those in Ireland and England.

“All the players can catch and pass very well,” Gatland said of the members of Wales's 28-man squad from which he has chosen his team for the RBS Six Nations Championship match against Italy in Cardiff on Saturday week. “They are as good [at this] as anyone in the southern hemisphere. The skill levels are as good as any I have ever seen. They are better than Ireland's and better than in England. They are as good as New Zealand's.”

At this, a silence fell. When Gatland had finished explaining what he meant, a lone voice uttering a solitary word summed up the views of those present. “Gosh.”

One wondered what Wasps and England players such as Lawrence Dallaglio and Danny Cipriani would make of that statement. For that matter, what would those Irishmen who played under Gatland think?

“Wales need to learn to operate under intense pressure,” Gatland continued. “They have to learn how to nail the lineouts and secure the scrums. They need to be able to do all these before they can become a side to challenge the best. Physically, Wales have a lot of work to do over the next two years.

“But I am impressed by their ability to catch and pass. In training I have seen them do things occasionally and said to myself, 'wow'.” Was Gatland using that well-known psychological ploy of boosting his men's morale? Ryan Jones, the Wales captain, did not think so. “One of the things about Warren is that when praise is deserved it is given,” Jones said. “When he told us this the other day it was nice to hear. It did boost our confidence. But I must say I had noticed that myself from training with the likes of the New Zealanders Justin Marshall and Marty Holah [with the Ospreys].”

As he hinted that he would, Gatland has chosen to start the match against Italy with a half-back combination of Stephen Jones and Dwayne Peel, the pair whose introduction as replacements in the second half against Scotland last Saturday helped Wales to move from a two-point lead to victory by 15. “James [Hook, who had started as fly half against England and Scotland] is very young and is going to be a great player for Wales for a number of years,” Gatland said. “I want to give him some breathing space. I do not want the weight of a nation's expectations resting on his shoulders.”

Gatland has recalled Mark Jones on the right wing, in part for his pace and in part to acknowledge Jones's response to being dropped after Wales's opening match against England. In a new front-row unit, Gethin Jenkins will start at loose-head, Matthew Rees at hooker and Rhys Thomas at tight-head.

Italy received a boost yesterday when Nick Mallett, their coach, was able to include Marco Bortolami, the former captain, in his 24-man squad after the Gloucester lock missed the opening two rounds of the championship with a fractured left eye socket.

Wales team (to play in Cardiff on Feb 23): L Byrne; M Jones, T Shanklin, G Henson, S Williams; S Jones, D Peel; G Jenkins, M Rees, R Thomas, I Gough, I Evans, J Thomas, M Williams, R Jones. Replacements: H Bennett, Duncan Jones, Deniol Jones, G Delve, M Phillips, J Hook, S Parker.

Italy squad: Backs: Mirco Bergamasco, D Bortolussi, G Canale, E Galon, A Marcato, A Masi, E Patrizio, S Picone, K Robertson, A Sgarbi, P Travagli. Forwards: Mauro Bergamasco, M Bortolami, M Castrogiovanni, C Del Fava, S Dellape, C Festuccia, L Ghiraldini, A Lo Cicero, C Nieto, S Parisse (capt), S Perugini, J Sole, A Zanni.