by Philip Mboya on June 21, 2010
Defending Champions Italy do not look any bit the kings of football they were 4 years ago. Two 1-1 draws against Paraguay and New Zealand in Group F has left the Azzurri camp in sixes and sevens with some players falling short of calling for the removal of coach Marcelo Lippi.
Juventus midfielder Claudio Marchisio is the latest player to express his unhappiness with Lippi’s formations.
“Here at the World Cup, many players are playing in roles they are not accustomed to,” Marchisio told TuttoSport. “The coach is making a lot of experiements. Read more... (440 words, 1 image, estimated 1:46 mins reading time)
by Dewa Nugraha on June 20, 2010
Another intriguing match showed at the 2010 World Cup as the raining world champion Italy challenged New Zealand, a match that on paper looked to be an easy game for gli Azzurri turns out to be a disaster as they fail to get the three points from the Oceania representative. It was pretty much a horrible game played by Marcello Lippi’s side as they fell down first through another scrappy dead ball situation, which was not that different from the goal they conceded against Paraguay.
Unlike the previous game, Italy did manage to get level before the second half however after Iaquinta’s perfect penalty gli Azzurri never seems to pick up the pace and tempo needed to unlock the all Whites tough defense. As I already mentioned after their game against Paraguay, Marcello Lippi’s side is dying for some creative spark to connect the midfield and attack, this game now gives more vivid evidence of that needs. Read more... (572 words, estimated 2:17 mins reading time)
by Dewa Nugraha on June 17, 2010
It looks like the future is not looking bright at all for Italian international keeper Gianlugi Buffon as not only he could end his world cup campaign due to his recurring injury but his future at Juventus could be at risk as reports stated that the Turin based club is preparing to look for another keeper for next season. The rumors in Italy stated that the Bianconeri is currently eying three goal keeper, two of them are Serie A based shot stoppers, Ac Milan’s Marco Storari and Chievo’s Stefano Sorrentino and beside those two another candidate that could feel Buffon’s place next summer is Monaco’s young starlet, Stephane Rufier. Read more... (387 words, estimated 1:33 mins reading time)
by Philip Mboya on June 16, 2010
Juventus and Italy international Gianluigi Buffon’s World Cup tournament seems to have ended prematurely. Often regarded as one of the world’s finest goal keeper’s, the 32 year old will now have to watch the remainder of his team’s matches from the sidelines after Azzurri team doctor Enrico Castellacci failed to set a recovery date for his sciastic nerve injury suffered during their opening Group game against Paraguay on Monday.
“At the moment we cannot hypothesise a recovery date, that will be based on objective clinical conditions,” Castellacci told the press.
“For now he will undergo a programme of physiotherapy.” Read more... (353 words, 1 image, estimated 1:25 mins reading time)
by Dewa Nugraha on June 15, 2010
The Italian national team started their first game in the World Cup with a 1-1 draw against South American counterparts Paraguay despite having more of the ball possession. On paper the result isn’t actually something horrible for the Azzurri, however there were some negative aspects that needs to have a close attention from Marcello Lippi if he still expect his team going far in the tournament such as the lack of creativity, sharpness and Buffon’s injury. Read more... (511 words, 1 image, estimated 2:03 mins reading time)
by Philip Mboya on June 14, 2010
Disgraced Fiorentina player Adrian Mutu is a man in trouble. The Romanian international lost his appeal against a Swiss court today in a ruling that will now see him pay his former club Chelsea more than 17 million Euros.
As we all know, Mutu is currently serving a one year ban for failing a doping test twice (yes you read that right) earlier in the year and it seems like Mutu did not learn much from his Chelsea sacking back in 2004. In my opinion, Mutu got off with just a slap on his hand and is lucky to be out for only a year. Read more... (305 words, 1 image, estimated 1:13 mins reading time)
by Philip Mboya on June 5, 2010
Italy’s coach Marcelo Lippi has blamed the Azzurri’s 2-1 friendly loss to Mexico on the altitude. From the look of things, this will be one World Cup riddled with excuses. The tournament has hardly begun and yet excuses and complaints are threatening to overshadow this historical event.
With key players like Camoranesi and Pirlo seriously doubtful for the tournament, Lippi is facing a hard time trying to convince his countrymen and opponents that his side will be a force to be reckoned with in South Africa. Lippi is hoping he can lead Italy to a 5th title that would equal Brazil’s record set when they won the 2002 event. Read more... (353 words, 1 image, estimated 1:25 mins reading time)
by Philip Mboya on June 4, 2010
This has to be one of the most shocking moves of the summer transfer window. Italy’s World Cup winning captain and Juventus star defender Fabio Cannavaro has signed a 2 year deal with Dubai based club Al Ahli.
Cannavaro reached the pinnacle of his career in 2006 when he led his nation Italy to World Cup glory after beating France 5-3 in a penalty shootout. His exploits in that event led him to be named both FIFA and European player of the year. Read more... (396 words, 1 image, estimated 1:35 mins reading time)
by Philip Mboya on May 12, 2010
Italy national team coach Marcelo Lippi yesterday named his 30 man provisional world cup squad for the month long tournament scheduled to begin on June 11. With under performing players like Grosso and Gattuso making the squad, i highly doubt if the Azzurri can successfully defend their title amidst strong competition from Brazil, Germany, Ivory Coast and the like.
To make matters worse, Lippi dropped Roma striker Luca Toni and did not include any Inter Milan players. Below is a complete list of his preferred 30 players.
Goalkeepers
Gianluigi Buffon (Juventus), Morgan de Sanctis (Napoli), Federico Marchetti (Cagliari) and Salvatore Sirigu(Palermo) Read more... (253 words, 1 image, estimated 1:01 mins reading time)
by Philip Mboya on April 14, 2010
AC Milan’s Brazilian forward Ronaldinho will be staying at the San Siro after all. The 30 year old play maker is close to signing a new deal that will see him receive a 25 per cent pay cut on his 135,000 Pound weekly wages.
However, there is a catch. Dinho will only stay with Milan if the Rossoneri finish the season in a top three position. That should not be too hard considering that they are a clear 10 points ahead of nearest teams Palermo and Sampdoria. Read more... (331 words, 1 image, estimated 1:19 mins reading time)
