Blog: Ju beauty!
Italy, with the help of Juventus, are almost through to the World Cup. Giancarlo Rinaldi praises their efforts
For one night only, all of Italy loved Juventus. Marcello Lippi’s block of Bianconeri put the national team on the brink of World Cup qualification with a win over Bulgaria. And, funnily enough, nobody was mentioning Antonio Cassano any more.
It was a blistering first half that put Club Italia back on track. I admit I felt Mimmo Criscito had been hard done by being left out of the side for neo-Juventino Fabio Grosso. But the flying full-back has a habit of delivering vital goals and he did so again in Turin.
The other target for much of my pre-match moaning also produced the goods. A neat interchange with Alberto Gilardino and Vincenzo Iaquinta made it 2-0. If I was being really churlish I could say he had enough chances to grab a hat-trick.
But this was no night for petty squabbles. The Juve block worked well, with Claudio Marchisio looking good in his first major match for his country, while the old boys’ network of Fabio Cannavaro, Gigi Buffon and Mauro Camoranesi was also impressive.
It must have all put a wry smile on the lips of Republic of Ireland boss Giovanni Trapattoni and his assistant Marco Tardelli. Nobody knows better than them the qualities La Vecchia Signora players can bring to the table. At least they got the consolation that Il Capitano will be suspended for Dublin.
The Azzurri eased up after half-time against Bulgaria and there is a danger they will travel to Ireland for little more than a glorified holiday. A win or a draw would put them through – but even a defeat would only leave them needing to win a home tie with Cyprus to get to the World Cup. It may be tempting to stroll through the match.
Yet Wednesday night should have taught La Nazionale a lesson. They can be a thrilling team, maybe even potential world beaters, when they seize the initiative. But when they try to kill off a game, they still concede a few too many chances to the opposition. It’s a Trap they shouldn’t fall into at Croke Park.
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footie italy dot com.