The Official Italy WC Thread (19 Viewers)
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The Italy coach is unlike most of his peers, encouraging his players to air their thoughts and paying heed to their advice.
There’s a phrase Marcello Lippi likes to repeat, one which neatly epitomises the Italy boss. “I don’t have certainties, I have convictions,” he says.
“Those who have certainties are sure they are right, their beliefs are immutable. Sometimes I envy them. I’m not like that. I believe deeply in my convictions but I’m aware that they might be wrong. And so I’m always open to challenge myself, to change, to find another way. Some see it as weakness. I don’t. I see it as survival.”
Sir Alex Ferguson may have once joked that Lippi had it all: he was rich, he was successful and his Paul Newmanesque looks made him painfully handsome
. The truth is that Lippi’s success is founded on doubt, insecurity and pragmatism. He doesn’t have the truth, because there is no such thing as absolute truth. Just many changeable temporary truths.
Anyone who has followed Italian football over the past few months will recognise that, without these qualities, Lippi would never have carried Italy into the knockout phase of the World Cup, where they’ll face Australia in Hanover tomorrow evening. It’s Lippi’s pragmatism – and the inevitable mistakes which follow from it – which has enabled the Azzurri to survive (at least for the time being) events such as the meltdown of the Italian Football Association, the fallout from the bizarre 1-1 draw with the United States and the not-so-secretive sniping from certain quarters within the camp.
On Thursday, half an hour after the Azzurri defeated the Czech Republic 2-0, the Italian FA officially charged 30 referees, executives and club officials, as well as four of the country’s biggest clubs: Juventus, Milan, Fiorentina and Lazio. Relegation is a distinct possibility for each of them – for Juventus, it appears a certainty – and the effect on the team is not to be underestimated. Thirteen of the 23 men in Lippi’s squad play for one of those four clubs and it’s entirely possible that, come July 20, when the final appeals process will be exhausted, they’ll be put up for sale.
“Yeah it’s a problem, it’s something you think about, but it’s something we’ve been dealing with for weeks now,” says Lippi. “We all know that when we go home, we’ll have a big ugly mess to deal with. We’ve talked about it and we’ve come to the realisation that there’s no point in worrying about it now. In fact, it spurs us on to go as far as possible in this competition. The further we progress, the later we have to go home and deal with things.”
The draw with the US resulted in Lippi being pummelled by the Italian press. He was slated, among other things, for not throwing Pippo Inzaghi on and for putting his faith in Alex Del Piero. Lippi’s response was typical. Against the Czechs, he ditched the attack-minded 4-3-1-2 formation, replacing it with a more conservative 4-4-2. When he had to bring on a striker, he called upon none other than Inzaghi – who scored Italy’s second – while Del Piero remained anchored to the end of the bench. So much for playing favourites.
“Yes, Inzaghi wasn’t happy that he didn’t come on against the US and he came to talk to me,” Lippi admitted. “But that’s not why I played him. I played him because I thought he was the right man. As for Del Piero, this idea that I’m obsessed with him is something you in the press have come up with. If I think it makes sense for him to play, he’ll play.”
A different coach would have never contemplated rewarding a player like Inzaghi after a semi-public whinge over playing time. But that’s Lippi. And that’s why, when Fabio Cannavaro and Rino Gattuso suggested that Italy’s formation was too attacking and a back-to-basics defensive approach would suit them, Lippi went and did just that. “That’s right, I listened to them,” he says. “But then I made my own decision.”
Never mind the fact that Lippi’s Italy had spent the best part of the last two years perfecting the 4-3-1-2 scheme. Of course, he may well wheel it out again against the Australians. What others see as indecision, he sees as virtue. That’s why striker Luca Toni, who started the first two matches but was an unused sub against the Czechs may find himself back up front, alongside Alberto Gilardino. Francesco Totti, the Roma playmaker who is slowly finding his best form after his injury, may return to the hole.
Up front, it scarcely matters who plays as Italy have a wealth of options. But it’s a different story at the back. With Alessandro Nesta almost certain to miss tomorrow’s game, the much criticised Marco Materazzi is ready to step in. Materazzi is Italy’s resident eccentric, a man who calls himself “The Matrix” and believes in the mystical power of the number 23 (he has 23 tattoos, lives at number 23, met his wife on the 23rd and has no fewer than 23 pre-game rituals he performs before each match):lmao2:, but also the kind of old school hard man whom the purists detest. Log on to youtube.com and you can see highlight compilations of his nastiest, dirtiest fouls. That said, he was voted man of the match against the Czechs, scoring the first goal and marshalling the back four with ease.
“I’m human, I make mistakes,” he said after the Czech match. “We all make mistakes, it’s just that some people’s mistakes seem to live on longer than those of others. Well, today I got a bit of revenge. I’m not just a thug am I? I just wonder how quickly my performance in this match will be forgotten.”
Like Lippi, Materazzi is the kind of man who pays attention to what the media says about him. Unlike Lippi, he doesn’t change his behaviour according to the feedback of others. Unlike Lippi, he lives in a world of certainties, not mere convictions.
Gabriele Marcotti
25 June 2006
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Lippi is the man...
There’s a phrase Marcello Lippi likes to repeat, one which neatly epitomises the Italy boss. “I don’t have certainties, I have convictions,” he says.
“Those who have certainties are sure they are right, their beliefs are immutable. Sometimes I envy them. I’m not like that. I believe deeply in my convictions but I’m aware that they might be wrong. And so I’m always open to challenge myself, to change, to find another way. Some see it as weakness. I don’t. I see it as survival.”
Sir Alex Ferguson may have once joked that Lippi had it all: he was rich, he was successful and his Paul Newmanesque looks made him painfully handsome
. The truth is that Lippi’s success is founded on doubt, insecurity and pragmatism. He doesn’t have the truth, because there is no such thing as absolute truth. Just many changeable temporary truths.Anyone who has followed Italian football over the past few months will recognise that, without these qualities, Lippi would never have carried Italy into the knockout phase of the World Cup, where they’ll face Australia in Hanover tomorrow evening. It’s Lippi’s pragmatism – and the inevitable mistakes which follow from it – which has enabled the Azzurri to survive (at least for the time being) events such as the meltdown of the Italian Football Association, the fallout from the bizarre 1-1 draw with the United States and the not-so-secretive sniping from certain quarters within the camp.
On Thursday, half an hour after the Azzurri defeated the Czech Republic 2-0, the Italian FA officially charged 30 referees, executives and club officials, as well as four of the country’s biggest clubs: Juventus, Milan, Fiorentina and Lazio. Relegation is a distinct possibility for each of them – for Juventus, it appears a certainty – and the effect on the team is not to be underestimated. Thirteen of the 23 men in Lippi’s squad play for one of those four clubs and it’s entirely possible that, come July 20, when the final appeals process will be exhausted, they’ll be put up for sale.
“Yeah it’s a problem, it’s something you think about, but it’s something we’ve been dealing with for weeks now,” says Lippi. “We all know that when we go home, we’ll have a big ugly mess to deal with. We’ve talked about it and we’ve come to the realisation that there’s no point in worrying about it now. In fact, it spurs us on to go as far as possible in this competition. The further we progress, the later we have to go home and deal with things.”
The draw with the US resulted in Lippi being pummelled by the Italian press. He was slated, among other things, for not throwing Pippo Inzaghi on and for putting his faith in Alex Del Piero. Lippi’s response was typical. Against the Czechs, he ditched the attack-minded 4-3-1-2 formation, replacing it with a more conservative 4-4-2. When he had to bring on a striker, he called upon none other than Inzaghi – who scored Italy’s second – while Del Piero remained anchored to the end of the bench. So much for playing favourites.
“Yes, Inzaghi wasn’t happy that he didn’t come on against the US and he came to talk to me,” Lippi admitted. “But that’s not why I played him. I played him because I thought he was the right man. As for Del Piero, this idea that I’m obsessed with him is something you in the press have come up with. If I think it makes sense for him to play, he’ll play.”
A different coach would have never contemplated rewarding a player like Inzaghi after a semi-public whinge over playing time. But that’s Lippi. And that’s why, when Fabio Cannavaro and Rino Gattuso suggested that Italy’s formation was too attacking and a back-to-basics defensive approach would suit them, Lippi went and did just that. “That’s right, I listened to them,” he says. “But then I made my own decision.”
Never mind the fact that Lippi’s Italy had spent the best part of the last two years perfecting the 4-3-1-2 scheme. Of course, he may well wheel it out again against the Australians. What others see as indecision, he sees as virtue. That’s why striker Luca Toni, who started the first two matches but was an unused sub against the Czechs may find himself back up front, alongside Alberto Gilardino. Francesco Totti, the Roma playmaker who is slowly finding his best form after his injury, may return to the hole.
Up front, it scarcely matters who plays as Italy have a wealth of options. But it’s a different story at the back. With Alessandro Nesta almost certain to miss tomorrow’s game, the much criticised Marco Materazzi is ready to step in. Materazzi is Italy’s resident eccentric, a man who calls himself “The Matrix” and believes in the mystical power of the number 23 (he has 23 tattoos, lives at number 23, met his wife on the 23rd and has no fewer than 23 pre-game rituals he performs before each match):lmao2:, but also the kind of old school hard man whom the purists detest. Log on to youtube.com and you can see highlight compilations of his nastiest, dirtiest fouls. That said, he was voted man of the match against the Czechs, scoring the first goal and marshalling the back four with ease.
“I’m human, I make mistakes,” he said after the Czech match. “We all make mistakes, it’s just that some people’s mistakes seem to live on longer than those of others. Well, today I got a bit of revenge. I’m not just a thug am I? I just wonder how quickly my performance in this match will be forgotten.”
Like Lippi, Materazzi is the kind of man who pays attention to what the media says about him. Unlike Lippi, he doesn’t change his behaviour according to the feedback of others. Unlike Lippi, he lives in a world of certainties, not mere convictions.
Gabriele Marcotti
25 June 2006
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Lippi is the man...
Byrone said:
What a fvckin farce,i wanted Italy to win but not this way.
Australia coach Guus Hiddink was left a bitter tactician after his side's defeat to Italy had him fuming from the touchline.
The SocceRoos bowed out of the World Cup courtesy of Francesco Totti's last-minute penalty, awarded, harshly perhaps, when Lucas Neill has adjudged to have brought down Fabio Grosso inside the area.
Hiddink feels defeat was wholly unjust on his side and when reflecting on Italy's performance, despite the fact they were reduced to ten-men for much of the second half when Marco Materazzi was dismissed, the Dutchman was scathing in his appraisal.
"Even when Materazzi was on the park we controlled parts of the game and then when he was sent off, we assumed full control," he said.
"Then we fully dominated against a team that is much more highly ranked than us, before we got caught out in the last minute and if you see the replay there is no doubt it wasn't a penalty.
"Italy just tried to play on the counter-attack and we tried to play another style, a style that is more attractive for the spectators to see but that is their style.
"The Italians wanted to play defensively, they love to play with a wall - they don't think about attractive football, they just think about the result."
One noticeable absentee from Australia's ranks was Harry Kewell, the man responsible for getting his country to the last 16, with it now being confirmed the Liverpool man is suffering from gout.
"He's got gout on his foot," confirmed team-mate Scott Chipperfield.
"He's in a lot of pain, he can't walk, he's walking on crutches.
"It was disappointing for us tonight because we could have done with him in the last third."
Source:Skysports
Hiddink is such a hypocrite,he didnt mind Korea winning in a dubious cricumstance's in 2002 WC & now he has the nerve to bad mouth Italy.
The SocceRoos bowed out of the World Cup courtesy of Francesco Totti's last-minute penalty, awarded, harshly perhaps, when Lucas Neill has adjudged to have brought down Fabio Grosso inside the area.
Hiddink feels defeat was wholly unjust on his side and when reflecting on Italy's performance, despite the fact they were reduced to ten-men for much of the second half when Marco Materazzi was dismissed, the Dutchman was scathing in his appraisal.
"Even when Materazzi was on the park we controlled parts of the game and then when he was sent off, we assumed full control," he said.
"Then we fully dominated against a team that is much more highly ranked than us, before we got caught out in the last minute and if you see the replay there is no doubt it wasn't a penalty.
"Italy just tried to play on the counter-attack and we tried to play another style, a style that is more attractive for the spectators to see but that is their style.
"The Italians wanted to play defensively, they love to play with a wall - they don't think about attractive football, they just think about the result."
One noticeable absentee from Australia's ranks was Harry Kewell, the man responsible for getting his country to the last 16, with it now being confirmed the Liverpool man is suffering from gout.
"He's got gout on his foot," confirmed team-mate Scott Chipperfield.
"He's in a lot of pain, he can't walk, he's walking on crutches.
"It was disappointing for us tonight because we could have done with him in the last third."
Source:Skysports
Hiddink is such a hypocrite,he didnt mind Korea winning in a dubious cricumstance's in 2002 WC & now he has the nerve to bad mouth Italy.