Italy full-backs prepared to suffer v England
Reuters - Thursday 21 June 2012, 16:26
Ask fans to name a
really great Italian defender and they are likely to think of
Franco Baresi or Fabio Cannavaro, grand masters who made the art
of central defence look a breeze.
Top full-backs have come and gone too like Giacinto
Facchetti, Beppe Bergomi and Paolo Maldini before he switched to
the centre, but of late Italy have struggled on their flanks and
dangerous England await in Sunday's Euro 2012 quarter-final.
All but one of England's five goals so far this tournament
have come via crosses from the right by either Steven Gerrard or
Theo Walcott, who scored the other from the centre of the pitch
but while effectively playing as a winger.
Italy coach Cesare Prandelli does not seem certain of his
best fullback pairing having played the first two group games
with three centre-halves and two wing-backs before reverting to
four defenders in the 2-0 win over Ireland.
The full-backs against the Irish, Ignazio Abate and Federico
Balzaretti, seem likely to line up on the right and left
respectively in Kiev on Sunday but both will admit they are not
in Maldini's class.
"England have quick players who find it easy to cross and
have great attackers who are very strong, but with serenity we
have to impose our game even if we all have to suffer a bit
together," Abate told a news conference on Thursday.
Balzaretti, who only has nine caps despite being 30, is in
the frame because usual left-back Domenico Criscito was dropped
from the squad before the tournament after police said he was
being investigated over match-fixing. He denies any wrongdoing.
CHIELLINI OUT
Criscito had a poor 2010 World Cup so some Azzurri fans are
glad to see Palermo's Balzaretti getting his chance, even if he
was deemed not good enough for Juventus in 2007 and shipped out.
AC Milan's Abate has made the grade at a top Serie A club
but it took him until the age of 24 to become established and he
is occasionally the butt of even Rossoneri fans' jokes given his
penchant for only running in straight lines.
Abate and Balzaretti have decent pace but in Serie A they do
not come up against many opponents who play with natural width
like Walcott and they rarely have to deal with the pinpoint
crossing ability of someone like Gerrard.
Prandelli's problems are not confined to the full-backs.
Italy's famed central defence, which seemed to take a safari
in South Africa two years ago as the Italians were dumped out in
the group stage as holders, will be missing linchpin Giorgio
Chiellini because of a thigh injury.
"Definitely Giorgio is a very important player with
international experience and strong physique but I'm sure
whoever replaces him will be good enough to have a great game,"
said Abate, who has a nasty cut above his right eye.
Leonardo Bonucci, who has struggled for form at times in the
last two seasons, and Andrea Barzagli, who returned against
Ireland after two games out with a calf strain, are set to play
at centre-half unless Prandelli returns to a back three.
Midfielder Daniele De Rossi played as part of a three in the
first two group games with Christian Maggio, who made two awful
errors in the 3-0 friendly defeat by Russia in May, at right
wing-back and inexperienced Emanuele Giaccherini on the left.