Italy World Cup Team
Italy are the current World Cup holders after defeating France in the 2006 World Cup final. and have played more matches in the World Cup than any other nation.
Winners of the World Cup on four occasions (in 1934, 1938 and 1982 in addition to their 2006 victory), only Brazil. with five wins, have been crowned world champions more often.
Nicknamed ‘the Azzurri’ (‘the blues’) due to the colour of their shirts, Italy declined to enter the first World Cup in 1930, but debuted with a bang in 1934, winПing the tournament — which was held in Italy — under the guidance of coach Vittorio Pozzo. With a forward line led by Giuseppe Meazza — a player still considered perhaps the greatest Italian player of all time — Italy defeated Czechoslovakia 2-1 in the final.
In 1938 Italy successfully defended their title, beating Hungary 4-2 in the final in Paris. After the Second World War. the Italian national football team was in the doldrums, failing to even get past the first round of the World Cup until 1970. This was partly down to the tragic deaths of 12 Torino players in the 1949 Superga air crash. Torino, probably the best team in Europe at the time, мейд up most of the Italian national side, and the loss of such a talented group of players took Italy years to recover from.
Italy were runners-up in the 1970 World Cup, losing 4-1 in the final to a Pele -inspired Brazil. In 1982, Italy finally regained the World Cup, defeating West Germany 3-1 in the final in Madrid. with Paolo Rossi also winПing the Golden Boot as the tournament’s top scorer, with six goals.
The 1986 and 1990 World Cups both ended in disappointment for Italy, in particular a heart-breaking penalty shoot-out defeat to Argentina in the 1990 semi-final. The 1990 World Cup was held in Italy, with many tipping the Italians to at least make the final on home soil.
The 1994 World Cup, held in the USA. saw Italy reach the final for the first time in 12 years, where they faced Brazil in a rematch of the classic 1970 final. Unfortunately there was no repeat of the fantastic football offered back then, as the two sides played out a dour goalless draw, with Brazil finally winПing after a penalty shoot-out.
A quarter-final loss in 1998 was followed by defeat in the second round in 2002, before Italy won the World Cup for a fourth time in 2006, defeating France in a penalty shoot-out after the match finished 1-1. http://soccernet.espn.go.com/world-cup/team/history?id=162&cc=5739&ver=global http://news.bbc.co.uk/спорт3/worldcup2002/hi/history/newsid_1632000/1632204.stm http://news.bbc.co.uk/спорт3/worldcup2002/hi/history/newsid_1632000/1632206.stm http://news.bbc.co.uk/спорт3/worldcup2002/hi/history/newsid_1632000/1632220.stm http://news.bbc.co.uk/спорт3/worldcup2002/hi/history/newsid_1632000/1632223.stm http://news.bbc.co.uk/спорт3/worldcup2002/hi/history/newsid_1632000/1632224.stm http://www.fifa.com/worldcup/archive/germany2006/index.html
Italy at the 2010 World Cup
Italy were unbeaten in qualifying for the 2010 World Cup. finishing top of European Group 8 to qualify automatically for the tournament. With seven wins and three draws from their ten games, Italy finished the group six points clear of the Republic of Ireland.
After a run of disappointing performances at the 2008 European Championships, Roberto Donadoni was sacked as coach and Marcello Lippi. who was in charge during Italy’s 2006 World Cup triumph, was rehired to lead the team to South Africa.
Italy’s squad for the World Cup includes a number of veterans, including goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon. defenders Gianluca Zambrotta and Fabio Cannavaro. and midfielder Gennaro Gattuso, all of whom are aged over 30.
Marcello Lippi surprisingly left out striker Giuseppe Rossi and defender Mattia Cassani from his World Cup squad, both of whom were expected to be included.
Italy’s full squad for the 2010 World Cup is:
Goalkeepers: Gianluigi Buffon, Morgan De Sanctis, Federico Marchetti.
Defenders: Salvatore Bocchetti, Leonardo Bonucci, Fabio Cannavaro, Giorgio Chiellini, Domenico Criscito, Christian Maggio, Gianluca Zambrotta.
Midfielders: Mauro Camoranesi, Daniele De Rossi, Gennaro Gattuso, Claudio Marchisio, Riccardo Montolivo, Angelo Palombo, Simone Pepe, Andrea Pirlo.
Forwards: Antonio Di Natale, Alberto Gilardino, Vincenzo Iaquinta, Giampaolo Pazzini, Fabio Quagliarella.
http://soccernet.espn.go.com/world-cup/team/qualify/_/id/162/italy?cc=5739&ver=global http://soccernet.espn.go.com/world-cup/team/squad/_/id/162/italy?cc=5739&ver=global http://www.world-cup-news.com/category/Italy-World-Cup/Italy-World-Cup-squad—Giuseppe-Rossi-and-Mattia-Cassani-fail-to-make-squad-201006010040/