Official Azzurri (Italy) Euro 2008 Qualifier thread (25 Viewers)

[Dostoevsky]

Juve pair ready for Georgia

Azzurri boss Roberto Donadoni has received a boost with the news that Vincenzo Iaquinta and Giorgio Chiellini have shaken off injuries.

The Juventus pair had been doubts for Saturday’s key Euro 2008 qualifier against Georgia at the Stadio Luigi Ferraris.

Ex-Udinese hitman Iaquinta limped off in Juve’s game against Fiorentina with a swollen knee, but his condition has improved under the watchful eye of doctor Andrea Ferretti.

Young Tuscan stopper Chiellini has been suffering with a thigh problem, but
he is ready to train with the rest of his teammates today.

Milan midfield veteran Massimo Ambrosini has already allayed fears over his fitness and Donadoni will have a strong squad at his disposal against the transcontinental minnows.

Italy will wear their current shirt for the final time against South Africa in next week’s friendly before the launch of their new World Cup winners kit against Scotland in November.

channel 4

Bonera: Del Piero Azzurri Days Are Not Over

Italy defender Daniele Bonera is the latest player to declare that Alessandro Del Piero has not played his last game for the Azzurri.

The Golden Boy was left out of Coach Roberto Donadoni’s squad to face Georgia and South Africa, thus causing many to question whether we will ever see the Juventus star in an Azzurri shirt again.

Yesterday Gianluigi Buffon claimed that Del Piero would return and prove his worth, while Milan stopper Bonera is echoing his sentiments.

"The coach has to make his choices, but I don't think that Del Piero or Inzaghi or many other great footballers, are excluded for good,” Bonera said at Italy’s training ground at Coverciano.

The 26-year-old is back in the Italy fold after a sound start to the season with his club and is hoping to win a place in the team for the Euro 2008 qualifier with Georgia on Saturday evening.

“Being part of the national team, aside from eventual absences, is always a big responsibility. I'm proud of the fact I get called up frequently,” Bonera added.

“Playing at high levels gives me the chance to be called up by the national team coach. My place in the team? I will try to showcase myself, there is still time to convince Donadoni.

“In any case, Italy-Georgia, like all the other qualification matches for the European tournament, is a difficult match. They have nothing to lose."

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[Dostoevsky]

Gilardino Determined On Azzurri Return

After opening his goalscoring account last Sunday against Lazio, Alberto Gilardino has set his sights on a return to the international set-up, following his exclusion from Italy coach Roberto Donadoni's list for the match against Georgia.

Milan striker Alberto Gilardino gave an interview to Sky and talked about his eagerness to get back into the Italian national set-up.

"For me the national team is something special," he admitted.

"I experienced the World Cup victory, I won the European Championship with the Under 21s, and I won a Bronze medal at the Olympics.

"I think wearing the national team shirt is something extraordinary."

The forward, who scored his first two goals of the season against the Biancocelesti at the Stadio Olimpico, is sure of one thing: "I'll do everything to put [Italy coach Roberto] Donadoni in difficulty, and to do what I have to do well for Milan, I have to play and score goals.

"I hope to get a call up sooner rather than later."

For Saturday's important Euro 2008 qualifier against Georgia, Donadoni called up strikers Antonio Di Natale, Vincenzo Iaquinta, Cristiano Lucarelli, Fabio Quagliarella, and Luca Toni.

Panucci: Maybe I'm Too Old For The Azzurri

The player joked about the fact that his age is much higher than average of the Italian players in the national team.

Christian Panucci spoke about the current Azzurri side and what he can still give to this national team from now till the European Championships.

"Maybe for this national team I have too much experience, considering that the average age is very young, but I believe that in the next 6-7 months I can still give my best and I hope to give it every time I'm called to do so," the Roma defender explained.

Panucci hopes he will be able to play at the Marassi stadium on Saturday against Georgia.

"I have many memories tied to Genoa, in fact Genoa was the first club to give me trust," he said. "I'm Ligure and I will surely be excited before the game considering that many friends, my relatives and also my son from Rome will come to see me."

In the end the Roma full-back gave his opinion on the current Azzurri squad.

"I think that the strong point of this team, despite the absent players, is the value of the group."

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[Dostoevsky]

Iaquinta out for Georgia

Azzurri boss Roberto Donadoni will be without Juventus striker Vincenzo Iaquinta for Saturday’s Euro 2008 qualifier against Georgia.

The former Udinese star, who has enjoyed a great start to the season, was forced to miss today’s training due to a severe irritation to his throat that prevented him from leaving the Azzurri’s hotel.

Iaquinta has no fever, which means the 29-year-old forward still has a slight chance to make the game, but is also suffering from knee problems, which worried him at the start of the week.

Donadoni is likely to select an attacking 4-3-3 formation. The former Livorno tactician was planning to play Iaquinta in the trident alongside Antonio Di Natale and Luca Toni.

But at this stage, with the Juve man not 100 per cent fit, Fabio Quagliarella is likely to step in. Shakhtar Donetsk hitman Cristiano Lucarelli is also hoping for a place in the starting XI.

Meanwhile, Giorgio Chiellini has fully recovered for the clash. The Bianconero should cover the left-back spot, but Fabio Grosso is also an option.

The Azzurri have also picked their jersey numbers. De Rossi will keep the No 10 shirt previously held by his Roma teammate and captain Francesco Totti, while Riccardo Montolivo has opted for the No 18.

channel 4

 

[HelterSkelter]

Im glad that Quagliarella will start.Donadoni needs to play him more often.

 

[Dostoevsky]

Calcio Debate: Will Buffon Become The Best Ever?

Tomorrow night Gianluigi Buffon will win his 79th cap for Italy against Georgia and will captain his country for the first time in his career. Carlo Garganese asks whether Buffon will go on to be remembered as the best goalkeeper of all time…

Gianluigi Buffon made his debut for Italy almost exactly ten years ago at the age of just 19. The date was October 29, 1997 and the Azzurri were contesting a crucial World Cup first-leg play-off match with Russia.

The omens did not look good for Italy. The game was played in the freezing Moscow weather and the pitch was covered in snow and mist. The teams even had to use an orange ball as the conditions were so bad.

In the 32nd minute of the game Italy’s goalkeeper Gianluca Pagliuca had to be taken off due to injury. As Angelo Peruzzi, Italy’s number one at the time, was also unavailable, a skinny-looking 19-year-old stepped into the snow for his Italy debut.

His name was Gianluigi Buffon. My dad, with whom I was watching the game, turned to me and said “Boy, I don’t think we will be qualifying for the World Cup”.

It has to be said, everything pointed to a home victory; the weather, Italy’s awful record in Russia and most importantly a rookie 19-year-old was in goal.

However Buffon was absolutely outstanding, pulling off some truly world-class saves in treacherous conditions. For someone so young his personality and confidence shone through and I can distinctly remember him punching the air after making a stop from Russian forward Sergei Yuran.

Italy miraculously escaped with a 1-1 draw, mainly thanks to the heroics of Buffon, and the next day the Italian newspapers were unanimous in agreeing that a phenomenon had been born. Cesare Maldini’s men won the return leg in Naples 1-0 and qualified for France 98’.

Buffon has since gone on to make 78 appearances for Italy, and at the age of just 29, he seems set to smash Dino Zoff’s Italy appearance record of 112 caps.

He has played in three World Cups, travelling to France 98’ as Pagliuca’s understudy, before featuring in every one of Italy’s games at Korea 2002 and Germany 2006.

In Germany of course the Azzurri lifted the trophy and Buffon was exceptional, letting in just two goals in seven games, one of them an own-goal and the other a penalty. Indeed until Zinedine Zidane scored for France in the final, Buffon went 453 minutes without conceding in Germany.

Buffon had as an equally impressive entrance for club as he did for country. At the age of 17 he made his debut for Parma against the mighty AC Milan and pulled off some breathtaking stops on his way to keeping a clean-sheet.

In six years at the club, he would go on to win a UEFA Cup, Coppa Italia and an Italian Super Cup, before signing for Juventus for a world record goalkeeper’s fee of £32m.

In Turin he has since established himself as the undisputed number one goalkeeper in the world, a title he has probably held since the beginning of the demise of Oliver Kahn in 2002.

He has won the Scudetto four times with the Bianconeri (two of these were later stripped due to the Calcipoli scandal), while out of a host of individual awards, he last year finished runner-up to Fabio Cannavaro in the race for the Ballon d’Or.

Buffon still has far too long of his career to go, before we can start labelling him as the greatest goalkeeper of all time.

However with another two World Cups and European Championships still in his locker, it seems inevitable that when Buffon does decide to hang up his gloves, he will certainly be talked about in the same breath as past goalkeeping legends such as Lev Yashin, Gordon Banks, and Dino Zoff himself.

goal.com

 

[RAMI-N]

Im glad that Quagliarella will start.Donadoni needs to play him more often.

But he has been under performing this season... definitely shouldn't have been called up to this qualifier!

 

[Christina]

But he has been under performing this season... definitely shouldn't have been called up to this qualifier!

At least for now.

 

[Dostoevsky]

No doubts for Don

Italy boss Roberto Donadoni is confident ahead of Saturday’s Euro 2008 qualifier against Georgia at the Stadio Luigi Ferraris.

“We know this is going to be a fundamental match for our qualification. We will face a young team and they will want to put in a good showing against us and then against Scotland,” he claimed.

Donadoni is also well aware that the Azzurri cannot afford to drop any points in their next few games and drop points on rivals Scotland and France.

“We will have to be determined and focused on the game and we also need to be aggressive. I am telling the lads to be patient during these days and they will have to concentrate in order to avoid errors.

“I am not planning to watch the match between Scotland and Ukraine live. I will record it and then look at it in the evening.”

Vincenzo Iaquinta is unlikely to be fit in time for Saturday’s clash, but Donadoni is hoping that the Juventus striker will recover by then.

“It was best for him to miss today’s training session. Tomorrow morning I will see if he is 100 per cent and then I will decide, but Vincenzo is a lion and he will make it.”

“Everybody is important for our team, but we can also cope with absences. My Nazionale is a winning team and we are hard workers.”

channel 4

 

[Sarah]

I am so ready for this Italy game tomorrow. I am so disappointed that Iaquinta will not be playing. This has definitely been a roller coaster with all these players being injured and ruled out then ruled in. I hope Iaquinta is ruled in and this 'throat irritation' better be severe.

 

[Juve per sempre]

Calcio Debate: Will Buffon Become The Best Ever?

Tomorrow night Gianluigi Buffon will win his 79th cap for Italy against Georgia and will captain his country for the first time in his career. Carlo Garganese asks whether Buffon will go on to be remembered as the best goalkeeper of all time…

Gianluigi Buffon made his debut for Italy almost exactly ten years ago at the age of just 19. The date was October 29, 1997 and the Azzurri were contesting a crucial World Cup first-leg play-off match with Russia.

The omens did not look good for Italy. The game was played in the freezing Moscow weather and the pitch was covered in snow and mist. The teams even had to use an orange ball as the conditions were so bad.

In the 32nd minute of the game Italy’s goalkeeper Gianluca Pagliuca had to be taken off due to injury. As Angelo Peruzzi, Italy’s number one at the time, was also unavailable, a skinny-looking 19-year-old stepped into the snow for his Italy debut.

His name was Gianluigi Buffon. My dad, with whom I was watching the game, turned to me and said “Boy, I don’t think we will be qualifying for the World Cup”.

It has to be said, everything pointed to a home victory; the weather, Italy’s awful record in Russia and most importantly a rookie 19-year-old was in goal.

However Buffon was absolutely outstanding, pulling off some truly world-class saves in treacherous conditions. For someone so young his personality and confidence shone through and I can distinctly remember him punching the air after making a stop from Russian forward Sergei Yuran.

Italy miraculously escaped with a 1-1 draw, mainly thanks to the heroics of Buffon, and the next day the Italian newspapers were unanimous in agreeing that a phenomenon had been born. Cesare Maldini’s men won the return leg in Naples 1-0 and qualified for France 98’.

Buffon has since gone on to make 78 appearances for Italy, and at the age of just 29, he seems set to smash Dino Zoff’s Italy appearance record of 112 caps.

He has played in three World Cups, travelling to France 98’ as Pagliuca’s understudy, before featuring in every one of Italy’s games at Korea 2002 and Germany 2006.

In Germany of course the Azzurri lifted the trophy and Buffon was exceptional, letting in just two goals in seven games, one of them an own-goal and the other a penalty. Indeed until Zinedine Zidane scored for France in the final, Buffon went 453 minutes without conceding in Germany.

Buffon had as an equally impressive entrance for club as he did for country. At the age of 17 he made his debut for Parma against the mighty AC Milan and pulled off some breathtaking stops on his way to keeping a clean-sheet.

In six years at the club, he would go on to win a UEFA Cup, Coppa Italia and an Italian Super Cup, before signing for Juventus for a world record goalkeeper’s fee of £32m.

In Turin he has since established himself as the undisputed number one goalkeeper in the world, a title he has probably held since the beginning of the demise of Oliver Kahn in 2002.

He has won the Scudetto four times with the Bianconeri (two of these were later stripped due to the Calcipoli scandal), while out of a host of individual awards, he last year finished runner-up to Fabio Cannavaro in the race for the Ballon d’Or.

Buffon still has far too long of his career to go, before we can start labelling him as the greatest goalkeeper of all time.

However with another two World Cups and European Championships still in his locker, it seems inevitable that when Buffon does decide to hang up his gloves, he will certainly be talked about in the same breath as past goalkeeping legends such as Lev Yashin, Gordon Banks, and Dino Zoff himself.

goal.com

GIGI

 

[Ahmed]

well he is certainly up there...

 

[X Æ A-12]

But he has been under performing this season... definitely shouldn't have been called up to this qualifier!

as much as i hope it isnt true i really think that he might be a won of those one time wonders

 

[rounder]

as much as i hope it isnt true i really think that he might be a won of those one time wonders

can he be one of the one time wonders ? it doesn't make too much sense does it ? If he's one of them then they couldn't really be called one time wonders .

 

[Sadomin]

Iaquinta has no fever, which means the 29-year-old forward still has a slight chance to make the game, but is also suffering from knee problems, which worried him at the start of the week.

channel 4

Can't they even bother checking his correct age prior to writing?

 

[Dostoevsky]

Donadoni: Del Piero’s Italy Career Is Not Over

Azzurri boss Roberto Donadoni claims that he has not closed the door on Alessandro Del Piero after leaving him out of his squad to face Georgia and South Africa.

Many sections of the Italian media have speculated that we may have seen the Golden Boy play his last game in an Azzurri shirt.

“There are many players who have done a great deal for the Italian national team and Del Piero is obviously one of these,” Donadoni told Rai television.

“I hope myself that he can return and still give a lot to the Azzurri shirt.”

Donadoni is not the only person to claim that Del Piero’s Azzurri days are not over. Milan defender Daniele Bonera said on Thursday: "The coach has to make his choices, but I don't think that Del Piero or any other great footballers, are excluded for good.”

Gianluigi Buffon echoed these sentiments. “Del Piero’s adventure with the national team has not ended,” the shot-stopper stated earlier in the week.

“Donadoni has not said his time is over and he has the desire to win his place back. He will return and prove his worth.”

goal.com

 

[Dostoevsky]

Lippi open to Italy return

Marcello Lippi has increased the pressure on Roberto Donadoni by admitting that he could be tempted back to the Italian national side.

Lippi has been out of a job since he quit as Azzurri boss just days after winning the 2006 World Cup in Germany, but he’s claimed that coaching his country again is not out of the question.

“I will leave all doors open,” Lippi responded when asked of a possible return. “I have learned in this world that you can never say never.

“However, I do hope that things go right for the national side tonight [against Georgia] and then in the European Championships themselves.”

The former Juventus maestro has been suggested as a possible successor to Donadoni seeing his difficulties since he took over from Lippi just over a year ago.

And should the Azzurri not qualify for Euro 2008 then there is little doubt that the Italian Football Federation would be looking for a new Coach.

However, they might have to act quickly if they want Lippi back seeing as the former Sampdoria player is impatient to return to football in some capacity.

“I’m ready to lead a club side now,” he insisted. “If a serious club with a serious squad and serious project came in for me then I would be ready.

“I really want to start working at certain levels again and it doesn’t matter where, whether in Italy or abroad.”

Lippi, linked with Chelsea recently, was also inevitably asked to comment on Alex Del Piero’s problematic contractual negotiations with Juventus.

“I think everyone is dealing with the situation in the manner which they believe is best,” said the man who led Alex and Co to honours galore in Turin.

“I think that Alex is Juventus and everyone recognises that fact around the world. Del Piero does what passes through his heart and brain – I respect him, but I won’t pass judgement on him.”

channel 4

 

[JCK]

Scotland and France won, just excellent.

 

[Bozi]

Scotland and France won, just excellent.

i am drunk

 

[Dostoevsky]

Unoffical formations for tonighs game


ITALIA (4-3-3): 1 Buffon; 22 Oddo, 6 Barzagli, 2 Panucci, 4 Chiellini; 8 Gattuso, 21 Pirlo, 13 Ambrosini; 27 Quagliarella, 9 Toni, 11 Di Natale.

Subs:14 Amelia, 3 Grosso, 5 Gamberini, 10 De Rossi, 20 Mauri, 26 Lucarelli

GEORGIA (4-4-2): 1 Lomaia; 13 Khizanshvili, 35 Kandelaki, 16 Asatiani, 17 Ghvinianidze; 7 Tskitishvili, 18 Menteshashvili, 5 Kirkvelia, 22 Kankava; 46 Tatanashvili, 30 Demetradze.

Subs: 90 Makaridze, 23 Salukvadze, 37 Shashashvili, 77 Kenia, 20 Mujiri, 15 Jakobia, 43 Siradze.

 

[Christina]

Nice to see Chiellini earned a spot.