I see some people think WWI is a table top strategy game where you can just randomly send a model that represents 20.000 men to any place on a map.
This is what I think of an Italian landing: What would be the point of the operation?
It would waste resources and manpower better used on other theatres of war. And you can forget any help from the locals (honestly guys, do you really think "liberating" the southern Italians from their own country will make them Entante-friendly? The concept is stupid at best). Plus, where would they land? They only have one shot at this and it has to be enough to bring Italy out of the war. Nibbling on parts of Italy is pointless. Going through Southern Italy to reach Northern Italy didnt even work for the WAllies. If the operation fails to bring Italy out of the war, then its another bleeding wound for the Entante.
EDIT: I really see no perticular reason why the Ottomans would not do the same thing they did IOTL.
It is not so different from the concentration of entente troops in Salonika OTL.
The Germans used to call it "our bigger POW prison".
Regarding motivations there's:
1) propaganda
2) racism ("
it's good-for nothing lazy italians we are talking here, not real europeans! It will be a walk")
3) historical suggestions: Napoleon seems far far away to us but not so to a '14 french general
4) I-have-troops-and-I-want-do-something-with-them attitude.
I agree with you: some people think WWI is a table top strategy game where you can just randomly send a model that represents 20.000 men to any place on a map. Churchill for example was one of them (see: Gallipoli)
Regarding possibility of a friendly population greeting the invaders, I am afraid it is not as unlikely as you think: there are several levers (campanilism, religion, mafia) which could be pulled