Napoli-Juventus: The changing face of the National team and Serie A

     There were a significant number of Italian nationals on the field yesterday during the Napoli-Juventus match.  There was an interesting mix of present and former players as well as former under-21 players.  All the roles were represented.  For Juventus, there was Storari, Grosso, Chiellini, Motta, Marchisio, Bonucci, Aquilani, Del Piero, Amauri, Toni and Pepe.  Napoli also had Italian nationals with De Sanctis, Maggio, Dossena, and Paolo Cannavaro.  The final score of 3-0 for Napoli has the Italian football world wondering how Juventus, with so many Italian nationals, crumbled under Napoli's assault.  Unsurprisingly,  Juventus exhibited many of the same problems as the Italian national team: a leaky defense, an awkward midfield, and an impotent attack.  Napoli, on the other hand, seems to have cultivated a winning formula with South Americans Lavezzi, Cavani and Gargano, the dynamic Slovak Hamsik, and relatively unknown Italians Grava, Compagnaro, Aronica and Pazienza.  These last four players are Serie A veterans, but not "big names."

     South American players dominate certain teams in Serie A.  Roma, Milan, Inter, Napoli, and Palermo, all top 10 so far, prefer to scout in Argentina, Uruguay and Brazil for strong players.  These teams do have their share of Italian nationals, except for Inter, as well as players from other national teams.  But much of their strength comes from South American talent.  The Napoli-Juventus match demonstrated that Italian talent is no match for the South Americans, particularly Italian defense against South American attack.  Ironically, Napoli's nearly all Italian defense completely nullified the Juventus Italian attack.

     The Napoli-Juventus game also demonstrates that big names could be the downfall of a team. Christian Maggio, for example, is thirty years old, and only just breaking into the national side, yet he's played for Napoli for three years; he is part of why the Neapolitan team has been so successful these past three years.  Why did it take so long for the national team coaches to recognize this midfielder's talent? 

     The top teams in Serie A do have a strong presence of Italians, both Nationals and not, but it is the strength of other nationals, particularly the South Americans, that keep them afloat in the domestic table and internationally.  This indicates that talent is cultivated successfully in South America, and not so well in Italy.  If Italians players want to have more clout on the field, then perhaps coaches and scouts should pay more attention to how things are done in other places, rather than glorify and cling to the superiority of Italian football of the past.

Championship Day 1 and Game 1 of the Euro 2012 Qualifiers

      Hello All, and welcome back from the long break.  The World Cup may be long over, but its effects are still felt in the football world.  Many teams disappointed their fans, and a number of federations agree that serious rebuilding is needed to return to former heights of glory, or at least for a respectable team.  There were two main criticisms of the Italian national side.  The first is that the players were too old.  This is still a point of contention as several days before the start of Serie A, an article on Yahoo! Italia claimed that the players in the Italian league are among the oldest in the world.  Too much emphasis on big names, established players and their overblown reputations, and too little on young and up and coming domestic talent.

      The second criticism was that the team was made up of Lippi's men and the Juventus crew, rather than the best Italian players.  Well, with new CT Cesare Prandelli, there are still a lot of Juventini who represent the Italian side; but I should point out it's because Juventus bought Simone Pepe from Udinese and Fabio Quagliarella from Napoli.  Prandelli also called up ex-Juventus defender Molinaro, now at Stoccarda.  Now, if you haven't noticed, the new call up list is full of former Prandelli players from his stints at Parma and Fiorentina: Alberto Gilardino, Cesare Bovo, Lorenzo De Silvestri, Giampaolo Pazzini, Angelo Palumbo and Riccardo Montolivo.  In my opinion, these are great choices, and I have been wondering for years why Cesare Bovo had not been called up for national team duty.  He played for the Under-21 with De Rossi and Aquilani.  But are we replacing a one-man team with another?  Many were outraged at the overabundance of Juventus players during the World Cup chiefly because La Vecchia Signora finished seventh.  Why pick players from a side that barely made the Europa League, when many quality Roma, Milan and Sampdoria players, who qualified for the Champions League, were left at home?  Is the national side faring better with a cluster of Prandelli men from Fiorentina and Parma, both of whom finished even lower than Juventus last year?  So far, the results are on Prandelli's side.  Italy's 2-1 win over Estonia was her first victory of 2010.  A modest adversary and a modest result, but still a win and three points.

     The first day of Serie A proved to be full of unexpected results.  Milan was the only "big" who won their opening match, and it was a resounding 4-0 victory over newly promoted Lecce, the winners of Serie B last year.  Roma, Inter, Napoli, Catania and Palermo all tied, and Juventus lost.  Genoa won the opening game of the season with a goal from midfielder Giandomenico Mesto, a former Under-21 player.  When is this guy going to make the national side?  Nothing has been lost as the season is very long.  Last season, Roma lost her first two games and came within a hair's breadth of winning the title.  Palermo came back in the second half of the season and almost qualified for the Champions League.  And Inter is, well, Inter, with as deep a bench as you can have and a seemingly bottomless bank account to keep it that way.

     I think the more interesting angles this year will be if the Italian clubs put more faith in their younger players, both domestic and international, and how the smaller national teams fare with the "big ones."  Estonia certainly kept the Italians on the edge of their seats for a while last Saturday, and Bielorus put the French back in their places in their own home field, despite the much more vibrant and dynamic French side.  Ireland, Serbia, Bosnia-Herzegovina and Turkey had important wins last week.  Let's see if they can maintain the momentum and stability over the next year and a half.
   

Parody is the Spice of Life

   The World Cup is not just a serious showcase of the best soccer of the time.  It's a world-wide party, as I discussed in my last post.  There is a time to laugh and a time to cry, but mostly we hope it's a time to laugh, especially at ourselves.  For example, during the night of France's loss to Italy in the 2006 final, a French group called La Plage wrote a song called "Coupe de Boule" satirizing France's performance and Zinedine Zidane's headbutt to Marco Materazzi's chest.  The video was an instant hit and numerous spin-off videos pullulated You-Tube.  For a refresher, click here to hear and see the original version.   Indeed, there have been a number of songs that poke fun at various nations participating in the World cup this time around too.  Some of this may be old news to you, but I just spent 2 weeks in Italy, and I was astonished to discover that hardly anyone knew about them, in particular the German song taking a jab at the Italians.  So I intend to showcase the more important, and funnier, tunes that have hit the air- and cyberwaves this summer.

   As far as I know, this tradition of satirical songs about football began among the friends of the Gialappa's Band.  The most famous of these musicians, and probably the first to satirize, is Elio e le Storie Tese (Elio and the Strung out Stories).  He wrote a song called "Nessuno allo Stadio" (No One at the Stadium) for the 1994 World Cup in the United States.  He poked fun at the stereotypical lack of interest in football in North America, and feared that there would be "no one in the stands, no one on the bench, no one ball juggles, no one who replays (the actions), no one at the stadium, no scalpers, no one scores, no attacking fullback."  Thankfully, Elio's predictions were completely off base, and the World Cup was a success among Americans.  Elio is also famous for another song released in 1998 called "Ti Amo Campionato" (I Love You, Championship), in which he accuses Juventus of stealing results with the help of the referees, who make calls in their favor which influence the results of the games.  He highlights a series of specific games, and shows the actions in the video.  The bottom line is that it was all done in the name of love for the Serie A championship, so it was all good.

    Last post, I discussed the Gialappa's Band and their contribution to the world of satire, which began with their 1986 World Cup commentating.  In this edition, during their show Mai DeeJay Gol on Radio DJ (see links in previous post to listen), they proposed a new World Cup theme to replace Shakira's "Waka Waka, This Time for Africa" with Czech folk song "Jozin z Bazin." (In the post, I mistakenly wrote the theme song was K'Naan's "Waving Flag."  I was going by their info and didn't realize the Gialappa's were mistaken until later.)  Rudy Zerbi, their comic-musician friend who suggested the song, then went on to record numerous versions of it with "celebrities" putting in their vote for the change.

   The theme song to the World Cup was not the only official tune the Gialappa's wanted to change.  They also proposed two new national anthems, for Holland and Germany, written by another comic-musician friend Andrea DiMarco.  Click here for the Dutch video.   No subtitles, unfortunately, but the song celebrates what Holland is best known for: sex and prostitution, art, tulips and quasi-legal marijuana.  The video features the famous group of "scantily dressed Dutch women fans" who were arrested for supposedly advertising a Dutch beer at the World Cup that did not have the rights to do so.  The German anthem "Semo Gente de Germania" (We are People from Germany) highlights German stereotypes such as their rigid mentality, poor food and bland sense of humor.

   Italians are masters of parody, beginning with making fun of themselves.  Maxino released a song called "Italia Va in Waka" (Italy Goes Badly) which goes to the tune of Shakira's song.   Maxino takes stabs at coach Marcello Lippi, the players' stipends, the Azzurri's inability to score, and the general poor show Italy put on this year.  But, as Italians are a generous people, Maxino put a good word in for the French national team too.

   Just before the World Cup began, a German quintet, Die Vier Sterne, wrote a song "Nur Italien Nicht" insulting the Italian national team and Italy in general.  The video has since been removed from You-Tube but you can see it here on the site Ai Tedeschi Rode Ancora! (It Still Gnaws at the Germans!).   Click on VIDEO to see it.  The basic theme of the song is that they don't care who wins the cup, as long as it isn't Italy.  There is a translation, in Italian; to read it, click on TRADUZIONE.  It's a cute tune and an amusing video, and the band clearly had a good time filming it.  However, the Italian response was swift and cutting.  The link LA RISPOSTA DI DADO shows a brief version of the response.  It begins with talk show host Maurizio Costanzo discussing in stern tones how offensive the song was, and that the Minister of International Relations, Franco Frattini, wrote a letter to the German government describing his disappointment at the song.  Really now, the Minister of International Relations had to get involved?  This is yet another example of the pompous posturing I mentioned in my last post.  I think that another reaction was much more appropriate: Dado's "Solo Germania No" (Only Germany No).

Who is Dado?  He is a stand up comic-musician from Rome, yet another dear friend of the Gialappa's and frequent guest on Zelig, a long running stand-up comedy show hosted by actor and comedian Claudio Bisio.  Dado's classic stand-up skit involves him "getting ready to sing a song" while rolling up his sleeves and singing about various misfortunes, in particular of women giving him the shaft.   According to Costanzo, Dado wrote the song during the night after the German song was released.  Dado performs a short acoustic guitar version of it live.  I recommend seeing the German one first, because Dado's full-length video also pokes fun at the band members and their video, as well as Germans in general.

   The site Ai Tedeseschi Rode Ancora! invites everyone to come up with their own response to the Germans.  So far, there are over 14,000 entries.

   Who knows what other parodies have been composed in other nations about the World Cup.  I would appreciate any information on them.  Thank you to all of you brilliant comic minds who have made life that much more bearable with your wit.  In this World Cup edition, the Italians have poked fun at the Germans, the Dutch, the French, and the Czechs, but the biggest poke was reserved for themselves.  Viva i comici italiani!

W La Gialappa's Band

Amid all this posturing over which nation is the greatest and cleverest at football, many have lost sight that the World Cup is also a gigantic party.  The best teams in the world are giving us a show, and people from all nations have flocked to South Africa to cheer and mingle.  Millions more flock to their local bars, pubs, salons, TV sets, radios, computers and Iphones to watch, meet, eat, drink and engage in other merriment.  For the most part, no matter the outcome, fans remember that they have been protagonists of the global celebration.  And they celebrate...

There are certainly those glum and angry with disappointment with Italy's poor show.  I pity them, but I will not linger over them.  I would like to call attention to three Italians who have not lost heart despite this, and treat this event as it should be: a global celebration.

Viva La Gialappa's Band...Long Live the Gialappa's Band, that's the title of today's blog.  Who are the Gialappa's Band?  They would need explaining to the American public; indeed, to most of the world who has not lived in Italy for some time.  They are Carlo Taranto, Marco Santin and Giorgio Gherarducci (respectively, see photo) a comedy trio who launched themselves via radio with their sarcastic and derisive commenting on national team football games, beginning with the 1986 World Cup.  Since then, they have commented every World Cup, including this one, and every European Cup as well.   From this notorious beginning, the Gialappa's Band have since conducted a series of shows named "Mai Dire..." "Never Say...", such as Mai Dire Gol (Never Say Goal), Mai Dire Grande Fratello (Never Say Big Brother) and Mai Dire Domenica (Never Say Sunday) that are comedy skits and running commentaries on various cultural phenomena, such as Japanese bonzai shows, football and sport, music, reality shows and politics.   They often tread a fine line as they designate significant time to ridiculing PM Silvio Berlusconi, the owner of the media network which employs our sardonic trio.  This year, as many have hoped, they are back for more World Cup Madness.  They are broadcasting on Radio RTL.  Here is the link: Radio RTL.  The show is called Noi Dire Gol (We Say Goal).  Here are some very simple instructions for full appreciation: First, at the start of the game, turn off the TV volume.  Second, click on the link to listen to the radio transmission.

The Gialappa's Band like to have guests that are the nationalities of the teams of the game they comment- preferably beautiful women.  (According to our kind hosts, their female guests are always indeed always quite stunning.)  The guests read off the rosters, so the audience can hear the "correct" pronunciation of the names.  There is a lot of banter between hosts and guests, but most of the commentary is reserved for the players, coaches, referees and anything that has to do with the event.  They interact with their radio audience by asking questions and inviting answers sent via text messaging, emails, Facebook, radio website and telephone.  They then read back answers, and chat with callers on-air.  The trio also conduct various polls; the main one for the tournament this year is "Chi e' il pippero del torneo, cioe' chi si e' messo in luce"... "Who is the tournament screw-up; that is, the person who has stepped into the spotlight."  Blanco has the lead so far, followed by Domenech and Senderos.  You can vote on the website or by text message.  Furthermore, a Facebook page has just been created for those who would like to have their lives commented upon by the Gialappa's.  There are already over 6,000 members.

If commenting the World Cup games aren't enough (The Gialappa's do 2 a day, at 10 am and 2:30 pm, Miami FL time), in the morning, one half hour before the start of the first game (7:00 Miami, FL), they do a one hour radio program on another radio station called Radio DeeJay.  The program is called Mai DeeJay Gol (Never DJ Goal).  They do not comment the first game, though the transmissions briefly overlap.  Instead, our trio of friends conduct a more classic-style radio show, with music, dialogues and interviews, but with a World Cup Theme.  For example, during the very first broadcast, they introduced the World Cup Theme Song, Somalian musician K’Naan’s "Wavin’ Flag."  They thought it was horrible (and I wholeheartedly agree), so they decided that something else should be the official theme song.  Their friend and musician Rudi Zerbi suggested a song that "has been close to my heart for a very long time"; "Er, exactly how long a time are we talking here?"  Giorgio Gherarducci sneered back.  The song was "Jozin z Bazin" a Czech folk song from 1978.  The video is hilarious (click here to see it).  I highly recommend watching it.  Even though you have no idea what they are saying...  Actually, there is an English subtitled version, but I'm going to let you find it...(hehehe).  This is one of their main running themes so far.  The Gialappa's also feature telephone "interviews" with famous personalities.  Most are Italian sports figures, such as Mario Balotelli, Davide Mannini, Massimo Moratti, Arrigo Sacchi and Fabio Capello.  Of course, the sports personalities are really comic imitators, and the dialogues are loaded with double senses, "news flashes" and running jokes. 

The Gialappa's Band remind us that this event is a celebration, and that there is laughter to be found in every tragedy, even one as big as Italy finishing last in their qualifying round and going home early.  So for the World Cup Blues, Dr. Maria suggests a minimum 1 hour of Gialappa's Band a day.

I apologize and admit that I was so caught up with them, it hadn't occurred for me to share it with the rest of you from the very beginning.  But never fear: if you can't catch them live, you can listen to a rebroadcast, and it lets you skip the commercials too!

Click here for Radio DeeJay show rebroadcasts.  The full calendar is at the bottom right.

Click here for Radio RTL game rebroadcasts

W la Gialappa's Band!!!

Third Round Assessement: Expectations

This edition of the World Cup has been a big disappointment for the Azzurri. In fact, it is considered one of the Top 10 worst performances. I think that the Italians, while preparing for disappointment, are surprised at how the pieces fell into place. Most, myself included, expected Italy to pass to the knockout stage; however at best, it could arrive at the quarter-finals. Not qualifying at all and finishing last, with more goals given up than scored, is very distant from this expectation. It could have been worse, as history has shown. But then, it shouldn't be so surprising, as the country has been bemoaning the mediocrity of the national team for some time now. Even the 2006 World Champions took time to warm up to the Italians (as did the 1982 team). If Italy had tied, as in '82, it would have advanced. And perhaps a scenario would have repeated itself again...But I don't think so, because the players on that team were true champions. I am not criticizing or demeaning the qualities of the present players, and I do believe they are the best players in the country, but this generation rests at an inferior level.

I saw several positive things about the team. I thought that even though the midfield still struggles to win and distribute the ball, the players worked hard to execute the coach's orders. The newer players gave energy and cohesion to the team that increased with each match. The play was more mid-field and attack oriented, rather than defensive ball possession. Italy did pretty well on several occasions of getting up the field quick with four or fives passes with a shot on net. Not enough, unfortunately, but much more adept than the Euro 2008 team.

All in all, Italy's final standings reflect a team that has a lot of hard workers, but lacking that spark of brilliance. Sometimes a decent performance can get satisfactory results, but at the World Cup, you just can't play "alright" and expect to come out of the group stage. You need that extra push to get you past the others; to show the world why you deserve a spot in the elite tier, rather than that other team. The 2010 squad isn't completely hopeless. The general agreement is that there is a great need for fresh faces. New CT Cesare Prandelli already has the football world galvanized. With Lippi's exit, so a number of problems calling up players will disappear with him. Not calling up players such as Antonio Cassano, Fabrizio Miccoli and Christian Panucci were due to litigation among those players' managers and Davide Lippi, ex-CT of Italy Marcello Lippi's son. Davide is a manager in the Player's Association who had legal problems with these players (and others). Many point to "personality conflicts" with the coach (Cassano and Panucci), but these conflicts probably arose from the managing situation. And it will probably be the last term of "The Senators," some of which (Gattuso, Cannavaro) have already announced retirement from the national team. But let's not get too carried away. Each coach builds his own group the way he sees fit. We will see "Prandellian" Senators soon enough.  

Italy's results fell far short of our expectations, low though they were. There is a lot of disappointment out there, but I hope that doesn't dampen interest in and enthusiasm and support for the rest of the teams.  As far as I'm concerned, this is the world's biggest party, and I'm still partying on.

Second Round Assessment: Reputations

There have been many criticisms leveled at the South African World Cup, I would like to address two of them.  First, that it has been very dull so far; second, that many of the teams have deluded with lackluster performances.

  I believe that the lack of excitement is due to a leveling of playing and technique.  Much of the spectacle traditionally comes from beating adversaries of a much lower skill level.  However, high profile games also have great reputations and goal-scoring, such as Argentina-England of '86 and Italy-Brazil of '70.  In most countries participating in the World Cup, there is a men's professional league.  We bemoan the state of African football, as the home team becomes the first in World Cup history to not pass the qualifying round; and it looks as if only Ghana will go onto the round of eight.  There are a significant number of Africans play in the world's professional leagues, but most of them play in amateur leagues.  And the political instabilities in different areas of the continent certainly retard the development of football, as they interrupt the development of many other cultural and social events.  When over 95% of African footballers are professional, then they will be able to make a real bid for the title.

  I believe this is why countries like Switzerland, the United States, Japan, Korea Republic and even New Zealand, have surprised the world.  New Zealand's league is not professional, but thirteen of them play professionally outside the country.   In modest leagues, of course, but modest leagues are challenging too, and we forget that they are populated by players from higher divisions.  Here, they learn to defend and work hard in midfield. We have seen that the ability to defend has risen dramatically, which has had the unfortunate effect of rendering games with low scores and draws.  Professional and national teams everywhere are also hiring coaches with international experience.  This migration of coaching tactics is also leveling the playing field.

The second problem is linked with the first, and that has to do with national team reputations.  First, there is the reputation of the national leagues, which for England, France, Germany, Italy, and Spain, are considered quite prestigious.  Generally, the assumption is if the national league is strong, then so is the national squad.  Of course, conflict emerges because everyone has inflated ideas of the importance of their league, and fans build up expectations that far exceed possibilities.  Second, even the "big" teams that have won, such as Argentina and Brazil, have disappointed because they didn't roll over the competition.  So far only one game has been a complete rout, Portugal-North Korea 7-0.  Expectations always rise, and the world expects to see this kind of result from certain teams.  Since many of the weaker teams have improved and the more important teams go through their ups and downs, what we are now seeing are fresher stronger sides challenging established ones that are struggling in transition. 

Let's look at the example of the latest debacle.  As a German acquaintance of mine said once, "France is always good for some drama."  Indeed, the French have not disappointed during this edition.  All the brouhaha over the player selections and tactical decisions stem from France's overall positive performance over the last 12 years: one world cup, one runner's up, and a European cup.  This is also punctuated with some lows, such as an early exit from the 2002 World Cup, and a lackluster performance at the Euro 2008.  In short, France has built up a reputation as a major force, and this reputation has been called into question both during the World Cup qualifiers and the tournament.  France is not the only nation to suffer from this condition, but it is the one most noted.

I am personally delighted to see the underdogs challenge the big boys in the playground.  It is irritating, if not downright infuriating, to read articles and listen to sports pundits deriding the "lesser" footballing nations, as though only the Europeans and the South Americans were capable.  Well, who laughs last laughs best, and England, France, Italy, and Germany are not laughing now.

First Round Assessment: Goal Scoring

The very last game of the first round has just been played.  As scoring goals is the best way to win, let's start with that.  So far, there have been a low number of goals scored, 27 in 16 games; 1.69 per game.  Two matches have ended in goal-less draws.  Two games had three or more goals: Germany scored four against Australia, and Brazil and North Korea finished 2-1.  Predictably, Germany and Brazil are already among the higher scoring nations, as well as the Netherlands.  The Korea Republic with two is an early surprise.

What has struck me about these goals is the unusually high number of different players who have made their mark: 27 so far.  Despite all the betting and predictions on who will be the top scorer, so far no one has managed more than one.  It is certainly too early to make any kind of conclusions on the goal scorers; for example, Paolo Rossi, who scored six for Italy's 1982 World Cup team and was the top scorer of the tournament, did not score until they reached the knockout stage.  His hat trick against Brazil is now legend.  What I find so interesting is the great number and variety of players who have scored.  Scoring is not just for forwards anymore. 

There appears to be a trend in the spreading or flattening of goal scoring, certainly on the Italian team.  The top scorer at the 2006 edition was Germany's Miroslav Klose with five.  Italy, the Champions, scored 12, and Germany 14.  These are petty average numbers for the World Cup for past several decades (see Fifa World Cup Stats).  But Italy's top 2006 scorer had two, and there were two of them: Luca Toni and Marco Materazzi, a forward and a defender respectively.  The other times Italy reached the finals, it had scorers at the top, such as Paolo Rossi, Roberto Baggio and Salvatore Schillaci with five, six goals.  Instead, Italy had scored 12 goals with ten different players.  Truly an assailing force from all sides.  

This should also help to break the catenaccio myth, the tactic with which Italy supposedly has been playing with for decades.  From the World Cup so far, I would say that the rest of the world is using catenaccio, and Italy has gone beyond.  The other traditionally non-scoring roles have begun to step up in attacking roles.  Known world wide for being at the receiving end of Zidane's head butt, Materazzi had already had a national reputation for scoring goals, though a central defender.  He generally puts in around six goals a year for his side; not too shabby for a guy who is supposed to stay rooted in his own defensive area.  There were other defenders were important for Italy that year, such as Fabio Grosso, who procured a penalty kick in the knockout stage, and scored the first goal against Germany in the semifinal; and Zambrotta, who scored against the Ukraine.  (Every Italian forward that played, by the way, had a goal too.)

Getting back to catenaccio, this is one of the reasons why there have been few goals so far.  Catenaccio- the defensive playing style developed in Serie A during the sixties, and for which the rest of the world derided Italy but secretly admired and perfected in unlit, tucked away corners- has become normal tactics.  People have been disappointed with Brazil's somewhat sweated 2-1 victory over North Korea.  Ball possession Brazil 63%, and 26 shots, but if there are eight defenders in the goal area, then the only ways you can score are on set pieces and fast breaks.  And Brazil scored on 2 more-or-less fast breaks- actions moving quickly up the midfield that don't allow the defenders to group and settle in.  North Korea, the "mystery team," had reportedly spent four months practicing behind closed doors; no doubt sprinting and pumping iron judging from their athletic form, and memorizing catenaccio plays.  No attempt whatsoever to play the ball, just 8 defenders in the area and reliance on their very rapid and scrappy forwards to do damage up top.  Sure, they got a goal; so what?  Brazil is not known for its strong defense, but for its champagne football and strong goal scorers.  North Korea played for a goalless draw, and hoped for a goal or two in a fast break.  In all honestly, that's the best they could have done against one of the world's best teams. 

A springy Italy dominated against Paraguay, but with it was impossible to shoot past the red and white blockade.  Italy nearly scored on several fast breaks: three or four touches and they had shots on net.  Indeed, they finally scored off a set piece: a corner kick tapped in by defensive midfielder Daniele De Rossi.  When catenaccio forces the hand (or in this case, foot), that's how you get past it: fast breaks and set pieces.  

So far, eight defenders have scored in the 2010 World Cup, that is nearly one-third of those scored so far.  Midfielders and forwards figure into the rest.  What this shows us so far is that scoring is not just for forwards anymore.  And, judging from the own goals, it's not limited to the adversaries, either.

Patrizia Panico signs for NJ Sky Blue FC

National team striker Patrizia Panico signed for New Jersey's Sky Blue FC last week.  This is an important moment for Italian women's football.  Panico, 35, has been a fixture on the national team for at least 15 years, and she has always been a top scorer in Serie A.  She has quite a few national titles and Italy Cups under her belt.  She has also participated in the Women's Champions League since its inception nearly a decade ago.  She has the experience and quality to make a significant impact in the WPS.

Panico will be the first Italian to play in the WPS.  I have always wondered why there were no Italians in the WUSA (the first attempt at an American professional women's soccer league) and last year in the WPS.  Italy's national team, while not one of the strongest, is still ranked in the top 15, well above a number of teams that boast players in the WPS, such as Mexico, Finland, Scotland and Nigeria.  While the American summer leagues, such as the W-League and WPSL, have attracted numerous internationls, only Rita Guarino has experience playing in the States.  Guarino is a former national team striker, and played with Panico not only for Le Azzurre, but also for Lazio and Torres.  She played for one season in the W-League on Maryland Pride in 1999.  She scored 6 goals in 6 games for the Pride.  She has since retired from play, but now runs a soccer school in Turin for boys and girls.

I have always wondered why there has been such little interest in Italian players for the profession league.  I think partly because in Italy, national team players usually get a nice deal to play for their clubs.  Many of them attend university, and the clubs are very flexible with training schedules so they can study as well as train.  Guarino, for example, when she played for Lazio, lived in Turin because she attended university there, but trained with a local men's team in Serie C (3rd division).  Idem while she played for Torres, a squad based on the island of Sardinia.  Since Italian women tend to stay in their league, as it is very accommodating to their exigences, they are probably overlooked by international scouts.  While some noted players have played in Serie A, such as Charmaine Hooper (Lazio) and Milena Domingez (Fiammamonza), women's Serie A also does not attract international players like other might.  This too, is certainly a mark against it.  It is considered an amateur league, but we all know that some players make a respectable living, while others practically pay to play.  

It is a very strange situation for women's soccer in Italy.  Despite being the world's "most popular sport," Italians still consider it a game for men.  Women's soccer is viewed as a novelty at best, and an utterly useless and degenerate pastime at worst.  There is a tremendous amount of local homegrown talent however, and it is unfortunate that the women's efforts to play the world's game are ridiculed and stymied by such misogynistic ideas. 

Well, I doubt Panico's move to Sky Blue will be something permanent.  The final match for the WPS is scheduled for September 26, and even if Sky Blue makes it that far, Panico will certainly head back to Italy and sign with another Italian team, as Serie A begins in October.  Who knows, at 35 she may even retire after reaching her goal to play professional football.  

I think she will fit right in with Sky Blue.  She is in top form as she is playing for the Italy Cup at the moment.  She just needs to learn to play with her new team mates.  Hopefully she will mesh as well and as quickly as Guarino did.  I will follow her performance in WPS with great interest and enthusiasm.  She will help change the world's view of Italian women's football for the better.

England's squad announced; optimism unfounded.

In England, the build-ups to international tournaments -- at least, ones for which we've qualified -- have a familiar pattern. The players and management make bullish statements about how good our chances are this year; sections of the media amplify the sentiment; unpromising displays in warm-up games are dismissed as meaningless; the population starts to believe it all; and everything is ready for a deflationary, lucky win against some minnow of the world game in the first group-stage match.

This year is no different, and so the announcement of Capello's squad yesterday didn't provide the corrective to the national mood that it probably should have done. When Capello took the job, he was lauded for his blunt statement that no player unfit or out of form would be part of his squads. This bold and entirely sensible stance seems to have been forgotten somewhere along the line. The selection of several crocks, coupled with (and forced by) a lack of international class in some positions, indicate that England will be lucky to do better than their customary quarter-final exit on penalties.

Goalkeepers
David James (Portsmouth); Robert Green (West Ham); Joe Hart (Man City)

Nobody is sure who Capello will go with as number one. Perhaps he doesn't yet know himself. David James is the most senior keeper, but has never lost his knack of doing utterly stupid things with depressing regularity. Of the other contenders, Green stops shots well but tends not to dominate his area, and Hart is utterly untried at high level. In this position, England struggle to find a solution.

Defenders
Jamie Carragher (Liverpool); Ashley Cole (Chelsea); Rio Ferdinand (Man United); Glen Johnson (Liverpool); Ledley King (Tottenham); John Terry (Chelsea); Matthew Upson (West Ham); Stephen Warnock (Aston Villa).

A few years ago, centre-half seemed to be England's strongest position. Now... oh, dear. Capello's first-choice pairing is Ferdinand, who has missed half the season with chronic back trouble, and Terry, who has spent most of the season looking very shaky, and recently developed a worrying propensity for making 'robust' challenges that are likely to see him off the field early. In reserve, we have, first, Jamie Carragher, coaxed out of international retirement owing to his versatility -- he's equally slow, clumsy, and unsuitably physical at right-back or centre-half. Second, Ledley King, who is a wonderful defender but can't usually play more than one game a week owing to serious knee problems. Finally, Matthew Upson is nothing if not ordinary.

As for the full-backs, Ashley Cole is a genuinely great left-back. On the right, Glen Johnson is excellent attacking, but consistently dozy in defence. Backing them up, Stephen Warnock has played in one international and a handful of Champion's League games. He may do fine if called upon, but can't come close to Cole.

Midfield
Gareth Barry (Man City); Michael Carrick (Man United); Joe Cole (Chelsea); Stephen Gerrard (Liverpool); Frank Lampard (Chelsea); Aaron Lennon (Tottenham); James Milner (Aston Villa); Shaun Wright-Phillips (Man City).

Lampard has had an excellent season and belongs on a world stage; Milner has been a revelation in central midfield and deserves his place. The rest present worries. Cole and Lennon have only recently returned to full fitness following long lay-offs, and though they look quite sharp, it's hardly an ideal build-up to the tournament. Barry is still injured, and will most likely not be ready until England's second game. In the past, taking players carrying injuries to the World Cup has worked out very badly for England, and it would be no surprise if it did so here too.

Carrick, Wright-Phillips, and Gerrard have all had seasons ranging from the disappointing to the dreadful. The latter, at least, has retained his club manager's trust, but has become mired in Liverpool's sticky, slow decline. International football may revive him; it also may not. Carrick and Wright-Phillips have spent most of the season as subs, or not even in squads, and neither has looked good when given a chance. The suspicion is that they're both just not good enough at this level.

As a whole, the England midfield selection displays the apparently interminable dearth of natural left-footers in the country, and it's hard to see how a balanced, cohesive, tactically aware unit capable of troubling the best midfields in the world is going to be forged from this lot.

Forwards
Peter Crouch (Tottenham); Jermain Defoe (Tottenham); Emile Heskey (Aston Villa); Wayne Rooney (Man United).

Rooney is England's principal attacking force by far, and it's vital that he keeps his temper under control. He's much better at that now, and if stays on the field, he can win games on his own.

Of the others, though, there are doubts. Crouch and Defoe have never quite seemed to work as foils for Rooney. Crouch has scored lots of international goals, but mainly against poor teams. Defoe hasn't even got that going for him, and consistently looks a touch short of class. As for Heskey, his selection was predictable; he really does seem to bring out Rooney's best. However, he is another player who's spent most of the season out of favour at his club, only starting games when other players are unavailable.

Now, all this could work to England's advantage. The players returning from injury, or coming off seasons spent doing nothing much on the sidelines, may be fresher than they would have been had they been fit all season. Those who've been lacklustre at their clubs may rediscover their shine in South Africa. And those who look just not good enough to play with the very best may manage to up their game in the company of those -- A Cole, Lampard, Rooney -- who really do deserve the international stage. But that's a lot of ifs. England are joint-third favourites on the most popular betting exchanges. My punt would be on the usual -- out in the quarters with a hard-luck story to paper over the cracks.

Euro 2016: France is the Best Choice

   
France, Italy, Turkey: the three candidates for hosting the Euro 2016.  Many Italians are outraged that Italy received the least amount of votes, and mutter that Michel Platini influenced the choice; but out of the three possibilities, I believe that France is the best choice.  Although a part of me wanted to see it go to Turkey- a nation that has never hosted the competition, a nation who's football has been up and coming over the past decade- another part of me is relieved that it didn't go there, as Turkey does not uphold those certain human rights that keep it out of the European Union.  This is purely political reasoning, but political motivations figure into making decisions. 

  

  Italians should not be surprised that that they got the least amount of votes.  For years, the Italian football world has deplored its own state: corrupt managers, dodgy refereeing, betting scandals, false passports, out-of-date stadiums, fan violence.  These last two issues in particular illustrate why France is hosting the 2016 Euro and not Italy.  While I do not follow French and Turkish soccer as closely as the Italian league, I can't recall any significant problems with fans and stadiums in these two countries.  While Turkish fans have a reputation of being occasionally violent, nothing as grave as the more recent incidents in Italy (fans and a police officer killed in rioting and clashes) have happened.  If the Italians bemoan the state of their national sport, how can they expect the rest of the football world to disagree?

  

  Italians really need to prove that they can host a safe and brilliant Euro tournament.  Safety is a top priority, yet two years after those deadly clashes, the Italian Federation is still trying to figure out how to make the stadiums safer, such as introducing the fan identity card.  This is a strategy that has worked brilliantly in England to rein in the Hooligans, infamous world-wide for their violence.  England's violent fan reputation is now a thing of history.  Yet in Italy, many still balk at the idea of fans having to carry a card (i.e. Daniele De Rossi's recent statements against this policy).  They believe it is a conspiracy, a Big Brother way of keeping tabs on the average Joe.  If that is so, then why haven't civil liberties in England been curtailed?

  

Stadiums are another important issue.  Over the past decade, Italians have expressed more and more dissatisfaction over their current state in Italy.  Many stadiums still have barriers that separate the fans from the field and from each other.  Many also are "Olympic" stadiums: they are multi-functional, mostly for track and field competitions, and have a track that goes around the pitch.  This forces the stands to be build even further away from the sidelines and significantly lowers the overall quality of viewing.  England and France have done away with this type of stadium.

  France is the best choice.  It has excellent stadiums, and its fans do not have a notorious record, either domestically or internationally.  Italy, on the other hand, is the exact opposite.  Turkey also would have been a good choice, but I would like to see them host the European Cup when they get their human rights issues straightened out and enter into the European Union.

Italy's Triple Crown

  American horse racing is not the only sport to have a Triple Crown.  There are several in international soccer too, and one of them is the focus of a great deal of attention this year: national title, national cup, and European soccer club title.  For this year, Internazionale FC has won them all.  In just over two weeks, Inter edged out Roma to claim both the Italy Cup and the Italian title; and then strolled over Bayern Munich for the Champions League.  Winning the Triple Crown is no small feat, and only a handful of clubs have managed to do so.  Last year, Barcelona made the clean sweep, the first in almost two decades.  Spain has recently dominated in the European club cups: Barcelona claimed two Champions League trophies in four years as well as a Triple Crown; and Spanish teams took home three UEFA cups out of the most recent six.  Indeed, Spain also won the 2008 European cup with relative ease.  This speaks volumes about Spain's international standings, as her position has risen dramatically.  What does the Triple Crown say about the position of the Italian championship and national team on both European and world levels?

  Even before the 2006 World Cup began, many had said that Italian soccer was in decline.  They pointed to numerous scandals: Calciopoli, alleged referee payoffs, administrative doping, and false passports, just to name a few.  In 2006 Juventus- an illustrious club that has won the most national titles, a top contender for the Champions League for several decades running, and home to some of the best players in the world- became the symbol for everything shady in Italian soccer.  After Juve won its 29th title, it was immediately taken away, and Juve was relegated to Serie B for allegedly paying off referees.  Many thought that the Italian national team would buckle under the weight of this scandal and exit the World Cup early.  Many even poo-poohed Luca Toni's 2006 Golden Shoe.  He was the first Italian to win, and with a mere 26 goals at that.  Afterward, Italy's World Cup triumph was still viewed with skepticism.  Italian soccer would surely collapse after the momentum of the victory died.  

  

  While it did show signs of strain, Italian soccer continued to make headlines.  Francesco Totti won the Golden Shoe the following year.  There were reams and reams of polemic written about Roberto Donadoni, the coach who stepped into Lippi's shoes for the 2008 European cup.  Half the country didn't think Italy would even qualify, the other half was infuriated when Spain knocked out Italy in the quarter-finals (a 0-0 draw that ended in penalties; the only team Spain did not score against or defeat in the tournament).  Italian teams have had spotty performances in both European club tournaments, as only Inter managed to reach two semi-finals and one final.  Inter has also claimed its fifth straight Scudetto (including Juve's 29th after it was stripped away from La Vecchia Signora).  It has been four years of bright light and deep shadow for Italian soccer fans.

  If European and national club play are markers for measuring performance, then I would say that Italy is in a solid position for claiming the World Cup title again.  Inter, this year's Triple Crown winner, is an unusual team.  It gets a lot of heat by sports pundits and national press because of its apparent lack of Italian players.  They argue that Inter is not an "Italian team."  They insist that Inter is a "foreign team," as many of its big-named players are South American.  In fact, winning the Triple Crown is a sure sign that foreign players dominate the Italian league and the international scene.  

   I believe that it is the league in which a team plays that influences a player's personality the most.  I would like to point out that it is thanks to Italian league play, on the eve of the 2010 World Cup, that this "foreign team" won the Triple Crown.  While Inter has no Italian players on the World Cup squad, Italy's national side represents at least 15 teams, all of whom have played against Inter and have considerable experience against these "foreigners."  Many of Inter's world-class players will play in the World Cup too.  I think this is a testament to the rigors and challenges of Serie A.  Where would Diego Milito be this summer without his prolific goal-scoring runs in both Serie A and B?  Three years ago, before becoming top scorer in Serie B with Genoa, he was nobody.  He was an unknown player traded for a low price to a middling-sized team.  Now he is one of Argentina's brightest stars and a strong contender for Fifa World Player and Balon d' Or.  A good many other players have made their national squads thanks to their performances in Serie A and B.  In my opinion, Italian soccer has quietly and discreetly developed over these past four years in ways that promise to give World Cup pretenders a run for their money.

  I think that Italy will do very well at the World Cup this year, and much of this will be thanks to Inter's collection of top world players.  The Italians have trained all year against top internationals in Serie A, Champions League and Europa League.  They have just as much experience with the competition, if not more.  If Inter is the Italian team most in form, then let us rejoice that the "Italian" players in best form play for a dozen different teams, some of which are not even participating in the World Cup; and some players were left scandalously at home (Xavier Zanetti and Estaban Cambiasso).

I Top 30 di Lippi (11 Maggio 2010)

Portieri: Buffon (Juvenuts), De Sanctis (Napoli), Marchetti (Cagliari), Sirigu (Palermo)

Difensori: Bocchetti (Genoa), Bonucci (Bari), Cannavaro (Juventus), Cassani (Palermo), Chiellini (Juventus), Criscito (Genoa), Grosso (Juventus), Maggio (Napoli), Zambrotta (Milan)

Centrocampisti: Camoranesi (Juventus), Candreva (Juventus), Cossu (Cagliari), De Rossi (Roma), Gattuso (Milan), Marchisio (Juventus), Montolivo (Fiorentina), Palombo (Sampdoria), Pepe (Udinese), Pirlo (Milan)

Attaccanti: Borriello (Milan), Di Natale (Udinese), Gilardino (Fiorentina), Iaquinta (Juventus), Pazzini (Sampdoria), Quagliarella (Napoli), Rossi (Villarreal)

  È tornato quel momento dell' anno, quando l' Italia deve decidere chi sono i giocatori piú forti.  La settimana scorsa, i titoli dei giornali avevano annunciato "Nessuna sorpresa!" dopo che il CT Marcello Lippi aveva fatto le convocazioni.  In effetti, non ci sono sorprese a riguardo gli inclusi e gli esclusi.  Molti tifosi sono rimasti delusi dal fatto che Lippi non abbia convocato nessun giocatore che non avesse partecipato alle qualificazioni e alle amichevoli, come Totti, Del Piero, Cassano, Amauri e Nesta.  Notate che sono quasi tutti degli attaccanti.  Gli attaccanti occupano un posto speciale nel cuore degli Italiani, tanto che molti credono che se l'Italia  convocasse almeno undici attaccanti, giocherebbe in modo spettacolare, vincerebbe facilmente e segnerebbe una montagna di gol.  Di questi giocatori, solo l' assenza di Allessandro Del Piero è sconcertante.  Perchè Lippi lo ha escluso dal cammino al Sud Africa?  È vero che è stato fuori infortunato per la maggior parte della stagione.  Peró da quando è tornato, ha segnato e ha giocato consistentemente bene per la Juventus.  Anche Vincenzo Iaquinta è appena rientrato da un infortunio che lo teneva lontano dal campo quasi da tanto a lungo quanto Del Piero.  Iaquinta ha giocato bene queste ultime partite del campionato, ma a differenza del suo collega, ha tenuto un posto fisso in nazionale dal 2006.

  Lippi è un allenatore che privilegia il gruppo.  Lui non vizia o coccola individui di talento, come abbiamo visto con Antonio Cassano.  È un giocatore talentuoso e puó cambiare la partita quando è in forma.  Purtroppo tiene un carattere difficile che rispecchia le sue abilitá straordinarie.  È famoso per le sue improvvise esplosioni di ira in partita o in allenamento.  Questo suo comportamento errato gli guadagna delle squalifiche dal campo, delle multe salate dalla societá e tanto tempo in panchina.  No, Marcello Lippi non ha tempo per questo atteggiamento.  Lippi preferisce i cavalli da soma, che lavorano sodo e sono affidabili; quelli che spendono tempo, energie e concentrazione per gli interessi del gruppo.  L' esclusione di Cassano ferisce gli Italiani in modo profondo.  Lui è un' attaccante, e gli Italiani adorano quelli che segnano: al diavolo con il gruppo,la  cooperazione e il lavoro di squadra!

  Quello che trovo sconcertante è la grande presenza della Juventus nella rosa per i mondiali: ben otto bianconeri, e niente Del Piero.  Perchè un terzo della squadra nazionale deve essere composta di giocatori da una squadra piazzata in settima posizione, e che è completatmente fuori dalle coppe Europee l' anno prossimo?  In piú, la difesa della Juventus ha avuto un anno terribile, ed è appena attiva nella differenza reti.  Solo Buffon, Chiellini e De Ceglie si sono salvati, e quest' ultimo non è neanche convocato .  Ci sono molti difensori che avrebbero potuto essere chiamati, e mi chiedo perché nessuno non si lamenta per le loro assenze: Balzaretti, Bovo, Bonera, Parisi, Pasquale, Motta, Santon, Fabio Cannavaro, Barzagli, Zaccardo, e De Ceglie.  Molti erano punti fissi nella Under 21, ma non hanno attirato l' occhio di Lippi.  Grosso e Zambrotta, che non hanno avuto una stagione brillante, continuano a rapprasentare la difesa azzurra.  Qui, la mossa piú vincente di Lippi è stata di lasciare a casa Legrottaglie, assolutamente scandoloso quest' anno.

  Si dice che il centrocampo sia il reparto piú importante di una squadra.  Con questo in mente, mi chiedo: Ma Camoranesi?  Davvero?  Secondo a me, lui è un grande centrocampista; in effetti, L' Italia è migliorata tantissimo in centrocampo da quando lui ne fa parte, ma Camoranesi, come tanti di suoi colleghi bianconeri, è stato fuori moltissimo tempo quest' anno per degli infortuni.  La sua prestazione in campo ultimamente è stata poco consistente.  Idem per Gennaro Gattuso.  Lui è l' unico giocatore che mi chiedo perchè tutti i CT lo considerino indispensabile.  L' unico motivo che sembra spiegare questo mistero è che lui faccia gruppo: tutto potenza, energia e buona volontá.  Si puó contare su Gattuso, non per una partita spettacolare, ma per un gioco grintoso e aggressivo, e 110% di concentrazione e sforzo.  Lui è una persona serie, sia sul campo che fuori.  In generale, trovo le scelte di Lippi per il centrocampo soddisfacente.  Secondo a me, l' Italia ha sempre faticato in questo reparto per un paio di motivi.  Per prima cosa, i miglior centrocampisti in Serie A sono non-Italiani.  L'Italia fatica a segnare perché il centrocampo è inconsistente nel servire gli attaccanti con dei passaggi e scambi di qualitá.  Seconda cosa, Lippi è troppo innamorato con il 4-3-3, una formazione che lascia il centrocampo sguarnito, e troppi attaccanti che non aiutano abbastanza nel gioco del centrocampo.

  Pensando alla selezione degli attaccanti, c' è poco da recriminare.  Forse gli unici dubbi rimangono con Giuseppe Rossi, il giovane Italo-Americano al Villarreal.  Ma c' è qualche dubbio sulla sua forma attuale siccome non ha brillato particolarmente in questi ultimi mesi, anche se ha segnato la settimana scorsa.  È stato un punto fisso in nazionale da quando Lippi aveva ripreso il comando, e il CT è giustificato nel portare il giovanotto.  C' è poco da contestare sugli altri.  Borriello, Di Natale, Gilardino e Pazzini occupan 4 dei primi 6 posti dei marcatori. e Quagliarella è nei top 20.  Iaquinta è stato fuori molto in questa stagione, ma è riuscito a segnare 6 gol in 14 presenze, 3 nelle ultime 6 partite.  È sulla buona strada per recuparare la forma neccessaria per i mondiali.

  Lo stesso non si puó dire per Luca Toni, attaccante della Roma, che fatica a ritrovare la sua forma.  Ha fatto vedere qualche guizzo al suo ritorno in Serie A, mi si è infortunato subito, ed è stato poco consistente dal suo recupero.  Lippi non dovrebbe essere criticato per aver lasciato Toni a casa.  Francesco Totti e Mario Balotelli sono altri punti di contensione.  Totti ha lasciato il suo posto nel 2006.  Non importa la sua prestazione nel campionato quest' anno, lui dovrebbe stare a casa.  Balotelli, un giocatore straordianario, ha eclissato pure Cassano nei media quest' anno, grazie alle sue esultazioni controverse e comportamenti aggressivi in partita e in allenamento.  Per concludere, nessuno dei tre ha giocato nelle qualificazioni, e questo basta per escluderli dalla rosa per i mondiali.

  Marcello Lippi punta sull' equilibrio e lavoro di squadra, ed è difficile contestare questo punto di vista.  Il successo della squadra nazionale resta sul un gruppo costruito con cura, e che capisce e sostiene la filosofia del CT.  La nazionale non è una collezione di fantagiocatori, che cambiano ogni settimana e sono scelti tramite metodi democratici.  Negli ultimi due anni, Lippi ha basato le sue scelte sulla costanza in campo, ubbidienza e le sue preferenze personali.  Ci sono tre reparti di una squadra- difesa, centrocampo e attacco- e tutti e tre devono essere sviluppati con cura e preparazione.  Sarà una novità investire fortemente negli attaccanti, mentre si lascia da parte la difesa e il centrocampo, ma una gran tragedia risulterà.  L'Italia non avrà una squadra spettacolare, ma non ce l' ha quasi mai.  Secondo a me, lo sbaglio piú grosso di Lippi è insistere con un 4-3-3 che obbliga l' Italia a soffrire in centrocampo e in attacco.  Ma lui è l' allenatore, ed è pienamente responsabile per le sue scelte.  Lui è uno dei migliori allenatori in giro, e fará vedere cosa puó fare l' Italia.

 

The End of an Era

  Inter has won the Italian title for the fifth straight year.  Her misstep a few games back nearly cost her the title, and I believe this is the last title that Inter will claim for a while. The past Serie A season has shown signs of change, which I believe are reflected in the final standings and overall performances.  While Inter did win yet again, it was a more difficult win, as Roma came from behind to claim top spot for a couple of weeks.  This was Inter's first serious challenge at the title in the five years that it has held it.  Roma had a tremendous season, starting off shakily with Coach Spalletti leaving.  But Roma managed to hire Ranieri, who guided the team on a twenty-odd non-losing streak that took them momentarily into first.  

   Milan finished third, very disappointing for many of the fans. Disappointed more by the team's performance than position in the table.  If you don't win, then it doesn't matter, really; but clinching the Champion's League berth is also a main objectives of the Italian clubs.  Milan had already clinched that last week.  Milan had many lackluster performances, and lost points in ties and unexpected losses against Palermo, Parma and Udinese.

  A trio of clubs reared up and challenged the big guns for those European spots: Sampdoria, Palermo, and Napoli.  It is important worth noting that in the top six clubs, there are three from center and southern Italy (northern clubs generally dominate the top spots): Roma, Napoli and Palermo, the latter also representing the isle region of Sicily.  Northern: Inter and Milan (both Milan) and Sampdoria (Genoa).  There is more southern and central representation in general in the table this year.  There are four teams from the deep south (two from Sicily), and one from the other isle region of Sardinia, and none of them relegated.  Central and northern teams lost out here, as Livorno (newly promoted), Siena, and Atalanta (Bergamo) go straight to Serie B, while Bologna must survive a playout round.

   It was exciting to see other surprises this year.  Parma and Bari, teams newly promoted from Serie B, had great seasons, and beat their fair share of top notch teams.  Bari's Paulo Barreto ended up in the top ten for scoring.  Zaccardo, famous for his World Cup 2006 own goal, was spectacular in defense this year and scored 5 goals to boot.   

  Juventus, la Vecchia Signora, shocked and disappointed fans everywhere since, finishing in seventh place, she failed to qualify for any of the European cups.  Team management, coaching, and players have drawn a great deal of criticism this season, and I have also expressed my concern for Lippi choosing 9 Juve players for the WC team (while I think he should have chosen De Ceglie over Zambrotta).  

  There were other disappointments, such as Fiorentina.  Like Juventus, she went from Champion's League play to not even qualifying the following year.  She had started off well, and then got knocked out early from the Champions League.  Fiorentina did well enough in league play for a bit; but then around the half way mark, she slipped up and struggled since.   I would say Fiorentina's decline began when Adrian Mutu was found positive for doping and disqualified for nine months; an adept playmaker and goalscorer, la Viola's attack has disintegrated in his absence.  Even national team forward Gilardino struggled to find his form.  Fiorentina's management must have deeply regretted trading Pazzini to Sampdoria over the summer.  

  Overall, it seemed that a strategy has been adopted by the Italian league, all except Inter, and it has been successful in many ways to overthrow league expectations and hierarchies.  It's called downsizing.  Financial pressures have been squeezing clubs for years, and they have been forced to drastically cut spending on players.  Indeed, Milan and Juve fans have protested the most often and the loudest this year.  They demanded big-named players, but saw their favorites leave (for big bucks), such as Kaká, and replaced by mediocre ones, low cost ones or both.  Milan fans have just launched a Facebook page against club president Silvio Berlusconi.

   Other teams have adopted many strategies for acquiring players.  Livorno did the same as Milan, and was unsuccessful.  The management sold their second top scorer, Diamanti, when they were promoted, and then Serie A the Livornese attack turned out to be shockingly sterile; even more shocking when you recall that Tavano and Lucarelli generally score over sixteen goals apiece.  This year was probably their worst ever, as they were out injured much of the season, and nabbed only a handful of goals apiece.

  The best tactic that the clubs are taking now are bringing up players from the youth teams.  Milan, who has been harshly criticized for her "old" lineup, has introduced several young players, including Antonini, a defender who scored in the final game of his debut season.  Juventus also has a number of younger players, as well as Roma, Parma, Bari and Napoli.  Even Inter, with its mountains of euros, has Balotelli and Santon, two national team hopefuls come up from its own youth ranks.  Juve fans, you criticize now, but you wait and see in a couple of years...  On the one hand, in the short run some of the bigger teams have suffered.  However, I am sure they will benefit in the longer run.  In the short run, the smaller teams have benefited greatly.

I hope this trend continues.  I feel sure that if it does, the national team will also take on a new face for the Euro 2012 and Fifa 2014. 

Mario and Francesco should stay home for the summer

 Francesco Totti and Mario Balotelli are two of the most spotlighted players in Serie A these days.  For the past decade, the captain of AS Roma has been the center of a controversy or a fantasy-market move to Real Madrid, Manchester, or Chelsea at the end of every season.  Not to be outdone, up and coming national team hopeful Balotelli has been making waves since he burst out onto the scene several years ago.  Born from Ghanaian parents and adopted by Italians, his appearnance on the professional pitch has sparked many controversies over his nationality, his playing skills, and, most of all, his attitude on the field.  This past year has been marked by debates concerning Mario like no other.  Only Antonio Cassano and his "Cassanate" have been comparably popular fodder for journalists, bloggers and football fans.

Francesco and Mario have been the centers of the most typical debate concerning the national team:  Who will the coach call up?  Some Italians seem to think that the forwards are the most important players.  Although Totti officially retired from the Azzurri four years ago, hardly a month goes by without a journalist suggesting that Totti should play for the national team again, especially since he has been an even more prolific goal scorer in league play since the World Cup.  This year, with the tournament just around the corner, is no different.  Some have even suggested that Totti is finished and is slowly fading from Serie A quality; such voices become quite vociferous when Totti is injured, but they instantly fade when he leaves the infirmary and immediately scores a double.  Take Totti's latest season.  He was injured several months in, and Roma struggled in a few games.  The situation appeared bleak after Luciano Spalletti's exit, but soon after Claudio Ranieri took over, Roma went on to a twenty-odd no losing streak that challenged Inter's reign at the top of the table for the first time in five years.  For those of you who claim that "Roma is nothing without Totti," much of this achievement was accomplished with the captain on the sidelines.  Nonetheless, he has marked his return to the pitch with a series of important goals, included the double that lifted Roma over a scrappy Cagliari on Sunday.

Balotelli has been a deep source of journalistic inspiration this year because of his extraordinary skills, his young age and his controversial goal celebrations.  Hardly a week goes by without the media intensely praising or condemning him.  Many clamor for his inclusion on the national team, believing him to be the solution to Italy's goal scoring problem.  (In my opinion, Italy's less than satisfactory scoring situation is a symptom of something more problematic, rather than the problem)  This past week's controversy, rooted in Totti's savage kick at Balotelli during the Italy Cup final, will no doubt continue to fuel this debate.  Each player claimed the other insulted him: Balotelli called Totti a "finished" player, and Totti replicated the affront after he fouled Mario.  Both players were quite out of line, and neither scored in that game.  But they both scored in league play on Sunday, indicating that neither was finished, and both were in form for the World Cup call-up.

I believe neither should go.  Totti made his decision to leave four years ago, and I believe his health and consistency on the field in league play have significantly improved because of his decision.  Balotelli needs to mature spiritually and mentally before he can take on the responsibility of being one of Italy's top thirty players.  Italy has no lack of prolific goal scorers for the tournament; indeed she has an embarrassing array of choices for this role.  What Italy needs is some calm and tranquility to prepare itself for the competition, and Mario and Francesco would certainly provide neither.

Io ho tifato la Lazio

Io ho tifato la Lazio Domenica pomeriggio, eccome no. Qui si sta parlando dello scudetto, e secondo mé, la Roma se lo merita, e non soltanto perché io la tifo.  Lo deve dimostrare: vincendo sempre, oppure capitalizzando sugli errori degli avversari. Cosí non è stato, grazie alla sconfitta in casa con la Sampdoria; l' Inter è riuscita a riacchiappare la testa della classifica. L' Inter deve continuare a vincere, dimostrandosi campione.  Hho la sensazione che la Roma non s' incepperá piú, ma, ma si è inceppata, e quella l' avrà costato la gara. 

A questo punto del campionate, vorrei fare una valutazione.  Mentre guardavo la partita, pensavo a tutta questa inutile polemica del tifare contro la propria squadra, un comportamento certamente antisportivo. Una caratteristica importante dello sport è il volere vincere.   Sono sicura che i giocatori abbiano giocato per vincere: sono dei professionisti, e perdere figura male sul curriculum vitae. Un' atleta seria gioca per molti motivi, e vincere è un motivo con enorme prorietá. Lasciamo stare questi discorsi dei mercenari...condivido che le cifre che girano nel calcio maschile sono astronomiche, e questo vale per moltissime attivitá sportive e non.  A volte, mi chiedo il perché ce ne freghi cosí tanto.

Mi è tornata in mente anche la polemica dell' inizio dell' anno: Totti vs. Zarate.  Questo Zarate è bravino, fa qualche gol quando è in forma, come capitó all' inizio campionato.   Zarate pensava di essere molto piú forte di Totti per motivi che non stiamo a elencare. Ripensiamo a questa polemica e facciamo qualche conto. Zarate è il terzo giocatore piú utilizzato della Lazio. Non so essattamente quante reti ha fatto, ma siamo generosi, oggi, e diciamo quattro. Le mie fonti: il sito della Lazio non fornisce questa informazione, e il sito di Yahoo Sport Italia- Lazio elenca i top 3 marcatori. Cruz, il terzo, ne ha fatte quattro. Quindi Zarate ne ha fatte quattro o meno. (Non c'é neppure un link sul suo nome ne una foto, tanto è forte). Nel mio parere, questo è un bottino scarso per un' attaccante che ha giocato 28-29 partite su trentasei. E ancora piú scarso se ci si ricorda (grazie Zarate supporters!) che lui è stato un campione del mondo (under 21).

Adesso, rivolgiamo l' attenzione a Francesco Totti. Fino ad adesso, ha giocato circa 1650 minuti (21 partite) e ha fatto 12 reti; il tutto con un lungo infortunio in mezzo.

Anche io ho scritto la mia su blog e articoli sul giocatore argentino. Alla fine, Zarate mi sta simpatico, e la polemica ha stimolato l'interesse sul giocatore e la rivalitá tra le squadre capitoline. Da notare anche la sfida tra i numero 10. Durante Lazio-Inter, avevo detto a mio marito "Se Zarate segna, gli perdoneró tutte quelle str@&$€*! dell' inizio anno." Ma cosí non è successo; e alla fine un piccolo piacere che traggo dalla sconfitta è che Zarate si è confermato sempre meno forte di Totti.

Il Calcio è uno sport di squadra: si vince e si perde insieme. Se avesse vinto la Lazio, la Roma avrebbe ripreso la testa e avrebbe avuto una presa piú sicura. La Lazio si sarebbe salvata con qualche giornata di anticipo. Alla fine, secondo a me, bisogna far venire lo scudetto a Roma, lontano da quella cittá che lo tiene in ostaggio da anni, e dalla nebbia fredda del nord al sole caliente del centro-sud. Per raggiungere questo obiettivo ci vuole lavoro di squadra. Ironicamente, è precisamente di questo che ci si lamentava in questi giorni: un' aiutino dalla Lazio per confermare lo scudetto piú saldamente nelle mani dell' Inter. Io parlo, invece, della cooperazione insieme per lo sport: il voler giocare bene, con anima e spirito, per vincere e divertire.  Se per fare un dispetto qualche tifoso della Lazio preferisce che la sua squadra del cuore perda, allora tutti i tifosi Romani perdono.

Ecco perché ho tifato la Lazio Domenica.

Ce la possiamo fare lo stesso. Ribadisco che ci si dimostra campioni vincendo. La squadra che vincerá di piú sará il campione. E basta. Mancano ancora due partite. Forza Roma!