World Cup Preview - Group E - Italy

Italy:

Nickname: “The Azzurri”

Coach: Paul Newman look-a-like Marcello Lippi.

Game Schedule:
June 12 – Italy vs. Ghana (3 p.m. EST)
June 17 – Italy vs. U.S. (3 p.m.)
June 22 – Italy vs. Czech Republic (10 a.m.)

Prospects: A month ago, I’d have said that the Azzurri were one of the favorites to hoist the World Cup on July 9th. Not now. They may still get into the later stages, but a cloud of corruption has enveloped Italian soccer in the past month that can only affect the performance of the team. Even in the best of climates the ravenous Italian sports press rakes over every morsel of scandal; they’ll likely gorge themselves into a stupor with everything going on now. That said, the spine of the side is extremely strong, with the world’s best keeper Gianluigi Buffon in goal, Allessandro Nesta and Fabio Cannavaro in the center of defense, Francesco Totti bossing the midfield and Fiorentina dynamo Luca Toni up front. Oh, and if things go wrong, they can throw on Del Piero and Inzaghi. No side will relish meeting up with the Italians, scandal or no scandal.

Big Media Story: That’s obvious – the match fixing scandal that will likely consume Juventus, Milan, Fiorentina, and Lazio.
Speculation will be rampant about which teams will be relegated and which club officials and even players will go to jail.

Key Player: Juve midfielder Mauro Camoranesi makes the team click. Their catenaccio style is thoroughly dependent on him.

Youngster to watch: Twenty-three year old Milan forward Alberto Gilardino.

Who Will Get the Goals: All eyes will be on Luca Toni who won the European Golden Boot this year, scoring 31 goals in Serie A – a tremendous accomplishment.

Who Will Get the Cards: Thuggish Milan midfielder Gennaro Gattuso.

Funniest Name: Massimo Oddo.

Prediction: If they get off to a slow start, the Czechs could knock them out of top spot. But the schedule works in their favor, with games against the less favored sides leading up to a final match with the Czechs. I still fancy them to get to the semis, at which point they’ll be knocked out by Argentina, the eventual champions.

~Bob