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Lei crede di essere capace di affrontare il problema.

Lei crede di essere capace di affrontare il problema.
She believes she is capable of facing the problem.
From Lesson 187:Avoiding the subjunctive with di (penso di andare)·Italian

Questions & Answers about Lei crede di essere capace di affrontare il problema.

Why is it di essere instead of che sia?
In Italian, when the subject of the main verb (Lei crede, she believes) is the exact same person doing the action in the second part of the sentence (being capable), you must use di + the infinitive verb (essere). If the subjects were different, like 'She believes he is capable', you would use che + the subjunctive.
Could I still use che lei sia here if I wanted to?
No, it sounds very unnatural to native speakers. When the subjects match in sentences like this, replacing che + subjunctive with di + infinitive is a strict rule, not just an optional shortcut.
Why is there a second di before affrontare?
The adjective capace (capable) requires the preposition di when it is followed by another verb. Just like in English you are 'capable OF doing' something, in Italian you are capace di + the infinitive verb.
Why is it il problema? Doesn't the -a ending make it feminine?
Problema is one of the tricky Italian nouns that come from Greek. These words often end in -a but are actually masculine. This is why it uses the masculine article il. Other common examples include il programma and il sistema.

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