Alessandro Diamanti stepped forward to take the final penalty kick which would secure Italy’s semi-final berth and end England’s dreams. It had taken over 120 minutes to separate Italy and England and it came down to the lottery of a penalty shoot-out. After Diamanti had successfully converted the winning kick, England knew that history had repeated itself. It was to be another tale of tragedy for the English, but Italy could look forward to facing old foes Germany in the […]
Italy were pegged back for the second consecutive match as they drew 1-1 with Croatia in their Euro 2012 Group C encounter in Poznan. A vibrant Italy took command of the opening 45 minutes and were rewarded when Andrea Pirlo curled in a free kick, only for Mario Mandzukic to equalise with 20 minutes remaining. The result leaves Italy in a must-win situation against the Republic of Ireland. Italy started brightly, with Mario Balotelli and Claudio Marchisio each having chances […]
Admittedly this is a late preview, but with all the tumult going on both inside the Azzurri camp and in Italian football as a whole, now is a good time to look at how Italy may fair at Euro 2012, what to expect and how Prandelli’s men compare to their group competitors. First up is the injury problems Italy is facing, particularly in defense. Giorgio Chiellini is just coming off an injury suffered in Juventus’ last home game of the […]
As we wave goodbye to another season of Serie A, Juventus can reminisce a wonderful campaign in which they claimed Scudetto glory and lost just once in all competitions. It may have ended on a sad note with the farewell of Alessandro Del Piero and the Coppa Italia final defeat to Napoli, but the work of Antonio Conte and all involved is to be commended. Never before had a side traversed the difficult 38-game path and made it to the […]
Three matches and three rivals vanquished (even if Adriano Galliani does not completely agree) – Juventus enjoyed a successful week which rejuvenated their Scudetto bid and saw them reach the Coppa Italia final. The week-capping victory over Inter made Juve forget the provincial struggles which has threatened to ensure a potentially unbeaten season likened more to Perugia 1978/79 than Milan 1991/92. It had appeared the January yips which were prevalent in recent campaigns made the shift to February following a […]
If one were to view the rosters for each of Italy’s four World Cup triumphs, one would notice a pattern; the core of the team was comprised of Juventus players. Not only that, but Juventus players made key contributions in each of these championship winning sides, names such as Orsi, Monti, Rossi, Gentile, Buffon, and Del Piero spring to mind. Juventus also has the distinction of being the club that has produced the most Italian internationals as well as being […]
Juventus left Milan with a point on Saturday, but not before a drama-filled 90 minutes that still has fans and the media debating. From phantom goals to offside calls, punches to scuffles, the match kept the moviola busy and threw in some decent football too. Both sides can feel rightly aggrieved over a goal disallowed by linesman Roberto Romagnoli, but the fallout now appears to surround Gianluigi Buffon’s honesty in saying that had he known Sulley Muntari’s header crossed the […]
Following Italy’s shock 1-0 loss in Genoa to the USA on Wednesday night, Gigi Buffon told reporters, “there’s no need to get worried” and that “we absolutely did not deserve defeat tonight”. The Juventus ‘keeper was absolutely correct. The Azzurri dominated proceedings at the Stadio Luigi Ferraris from start to finish and as Giorgio Chiellini opined, “we deserved at least a draw from this performance.” Still, with any loss, no matter the significance, questions will always be raised. But, Italy’s […]
Saturday evening will be a strange one for Andrea Pirlo. This time last season he had fallen out of favor with his manager as his Milan teammates charged through Serie A en route to their 18th scudetto. Twelve months later he has become an integral part in orchestrating Juventus’ offense as they make their own charge for the league title. The midfield maestro was extremely important in the way Milan played in the early to mid 2000s; with the rossoneri […]
Parma and Juventus played out a 0-0 draw at the Stadio Ennio Tardini on Wednesday night in their rescheduled round 21 match, postponed at the start of February due to heavy snowfall. The result means Juve failed to leapfrog Milan and reclaim first place in Serie A, but moved to within one point of the Rossoneri with another game in hand still to play. Juventus created the better chances and almost struck immediately, but Giorgio Chiellini’s header hit the base […]
Juventus were crowned Serie A Winter Champions after one of their most controlled performances of the season on Saturday night. Atalanta have proven to be tough opposition for any team, especially at home where their only defeat prior was to champions Milan. But, the Bianconeri overcame early frustration to eventually overcome the Nerazzurri with relative ease. Giorgio Chiellini took Leonardo Bonucci’s place at centre-back in the only change from the XI that disappointed against Cagliari one week prior. Atalanta, meanwhile, […]
We are now half way through the Serie A season and the main performance of the week 19 weekend was Roma’s 5-1 win over Cesena on Saturday evening. The Luis Enrique project now seems to be taking shape. Later that night Juventus won away at Atalanta and with that win were crowned winter champions. Inter Milan now have won eight games in a row in all competitions after beating Lazio 2-1 in the big Sunday night game. Saturday 21st January […]
