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Euro 2012 Comment: Antonio Cassano Saves The Day But Italy Must Find An Attacking Midfielder & Lose Simone Pepe
Italy avoided a huge upset with a second half comeback in Tallinn, Carlo Garganese offers his verdict…
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Sep 4, 2010 1:30:00 PM
By Carlo Garganese
With just half-an-hour remaining of Italy’s opening Group C Euro 2012 qualifier in Tallinn last night, the Azzurri were staring down the barrel of possibly the most embarrassing result of their history as they trailed Estonia 1-0.
A certain Antonio Cassano then saved the day, heading home the equaliser from an Andrea Pirlo corner before creating Leonardo Bonucci’s winner a few minutes later with an exquisite backheel. Thus ended the 2006 world champions’ painful winless run dating back 10 months, and ensured a crucial three points on the road to Poland and Ukraine.
On the whole, Italy didn’t play badly last night. Only two individuals can be criticised. Goalkeeper Salvatore Sirigu who was to blame for Estonia’s goal after fumbling a 40-yard free kick, and almost conceded again late on when he arrived underneath a cross. And Simone Pepe who spent his entire game running around like a headless chicken and just doesn’t possess the quality or the composure for this level.
The back four was occasionally too flat - something that must be corrected against better opponents - and the tempo was slower than it should have been, but Italy generally moved the ball around well and it is evident that coach Cesare Prandelli wants his team to play pass-and-move football rather than the direct long-ball nonsense that characterised Marcello Lippi’s disastrous second spell in charge.
One area Italy cannot match Euro favourites Spain and Germany in is the attacking midfield role. With Pirlo and Daniele De Rossi sitting deeper, what la Nazionale is really crying out for is a flexible player who can link the middle-third to the final third with dribbling, pace, creativity and guile; an Andres Iniesta or Mesut Oezil type of midfielder. Italy just don’t possess one of these currently, and until they do the balance between the midfield and the attack will always be complicated. The hope is that Cassano and the injured Mario Balotelli dropping deep can somehow alleviate this problem.
Critics must remember that Italy always struggle in September, and are notoriously slow starters in qualification campaigns. In 2008, Lippi’s men were completely outplayed in Cyprus and fluked a 2-1 win with an injury time Toto Di Natale goal. Two years before that, the world champions faced an uphill struggle to progress to Euro 2008 after they drew at home to Lithuania before losing 3-1 in Paris to France. Of course, fans would have loved to enjoy an emphatic victory yesterday, but 2-1 is not a disaster especially when you consider that head-to-head records – and not goal difference – separates group positions.
Italy will comfortably beat the Faroe Islands on Tuesday to sit at least joint-top of Group C. The real examinations begin in October with the away trip to Northern Ireland and home test against Serbia. Only then will we really know what Prandelli’s new Italy are made of.
A certain Antonio Cassano then saved the day, heading home the equaliser from an Andrea Pirlo corner before creating Leonardo Bonucci’s winner a few minutes later with an exquisite backheel. Thus ended the 2006 world champions’ painful winless run dating back 10 months, and ensured a crucial three points on the road to Poland and Ukraine.
On the whole, Italy didn’t play badly last night. Only two individuals can be criticised. Goalkeeper Salvatore Sirigu who was to blame for Estonia’s goal after fumbling a 40-yard free kick, and almost conceded again late on when he arrived underneath a cross. And Simone Pepe who spent his entire game running around like a headless chicken and just doesn’t possess the quality or the composure for this level.
The back four was occasionally too flat - something that must be corrected against better opponents - and the tempo was slower than it should have been, but Italy generally moved the ball around well and it is evident that coach Cesare Prandelli wants his team to play pass-and-move football rather than the direct long-ball nonsense that characterised Marcello Lippi’s disastrous second spell in charge.
Cassano's moment of genius set up Bonucci for the winner
One area Italy cannot match Euro favourites Spain and Germany in is the attacking midfield role. With Pirlo and Daniele De Rossi sitting deeper, what la Nazionale is really crying out for is a flexible player who can link the middle-third to the final third with dribbling, pace, creativity and guile; an Andres Iniesta or Mesut Oezil type of midfielder. Italy just don’t possess one of these currently, and until they do the balance between the midfield and the attack will always be complicated. The hope is that Cassano and the injured Mario Balotelli dropping deep can somehow alleviate this problem.
Critics must remember that Italy always struggle in September, and are notoriously slow starters in qualification campaigns. In 2008, Lippi’s men were completely outplayed in Cyprus and fluked a 2-1 win with an injury time Toto Di Natale goal. Two years before that, the world champions faced an uphill struggle to progress to Euro 2008 after they drew at home to Lithuania before losing 3-1 in Paris to France. Of course, fans would have loved to enjoy an emphatic victory yesterday, but 2-1 is not a disaster especially when you consider that head-to-head records – and not goal difference – separates group positions.
Italy will comfortably beat the Faroe Islands on Tuesday to sit at least joint-top of Group C. The real examinations begin in October with the away trip to Northern Ireland and home test against Serbia. Only then will we really know what Prandelli’s new Italy are made of.
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| Sign up with bet365 for a free bet up to £200 |
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