(Stupid Beyond Words)

Before I get started, let me say this: I respect Scotland’s football team, and am impressed with what they’ve done this campaign. Should they defeat Italy on Saturday, then by all means, they deserve to qualify. In fact, one could argue that they deserve to qualify regardless of the result. Their performance in this set of qualifiers was that impressive. Indeed, they will probably continue to impress - particularly this Saturday - when they face our Azzurri.

Will Scotland’s talent, spirit, and the voices of their Tartan Army be enough to see them through? That remains to be seen. Obviously, I am an Italy supporter, and as such, I hope that the Azzurri can overcome anything that they confront in Scotland… but at the same token, I will not malign or defame Scotland, its fans, or its national team. First of all, they wouldn’t deserve it. Sure, they have a tougher, more hard-tackling style of play than Italy… but that’s fine. It’s their style. To hurl accusations at them and call them names would not be in the spirit of the game / good will.

Unfortunately, however, BBC’s Chick Young apparently didn’t get the memo on good will. In fact, he seems determined to spread the opposite.

Let’s take a look at some of his more ridiculous comments regarding the upcoming match:

Continue to the rest of this post… »

Categories: Azzurri, Euro 2008
1 Comment »

(New Jersey!)

(No, this isn’t about the state. Sorry. )

Today, Cannavaro and The Don unveiled Italy’s new away shirt, which will be worn for the first time when the Azzurri visit Scotland this weekend.  Here’s the best photo I could find. (Channel 4 has a few more, but… well… they suck worse than this one, if you can imagine that.)

If you look at the Channel 4 shots, you can see that it says “Italia” in gold at the back of the collar. You’ll also see the funky (and I mean “funky” as in “I’m not sure if I like it,” not funky as in “cool“) font that they used for the name and number.

Additionally, if you squint really hard, you can almost hear Cannavaro whispering “Don, why the f*ck is this thing so shiny? And gold? What the sh!t is that? No, seriously, Gold? That, plus the white chrome material, and Grosso’s going to look like a g*ddamn disco inferno on Saturday.”

In case you’re wondering, the home (i.e blue, as in azzurro, as in Azzurri) shirt won’t be unveiled until a little before the actual tourney. (That is… assuming our ragazzi make it. If they don’t make it, I’m not sure if I’ll care when they unveil the new shirt.)

Continue to the rest of this post… »

Categories: Azzurri, Euro 2008
1 Comment »

(Azzurri Called for Scotland)

Condolences

Before we talk Azzurri, my condolences go to the family and friends of Gabriele Sandri, a Lazio supporter and Rome-based DJ who was killed today by Italian police following a scuffle at a highway rest stop in Tuscany. Details of the events leading up to Sandri’s tragic death are unclear, but there have been reports of protests, brawls, and even riots springing up across Italy as news of the killing spread. Additionally, three Serie A matches were postponed, either minutes after kickoff, or beforehand, as a proactive measure.

The Don: No to Del Piero, Yes to Palladino

With the exception of Alex Del Piero’s omission and Raffaele Palladino’s inclusion, there really weren’t any changes in The Don’s selections for crucial Euro 2008 qualifier with Scotland and the subsequent engagement with Faroe Islands. (I guess The Don realizes that this is no time for experimentation.)

Here are our 24 Azzurri:

Goalkeepers: Gianluigi Buffon (Juventus), Marco Amelia (AS Livorno Calcio), Gianluca Curci (AS Roma).

Defenders: Andrea Barzagli (US Città di Palermo), Daniele Bonera (AC Milan), Fabio Cannavaro (Real Madrid CF), Giorgio Chiellini (Juventus), Fabio Grosso (Olympique Lyonnais), Massimo Oddo (AC Milan), Christian Panucci (AS Roma), Gianluca Zambrotta (FC Barcelona).

Midfielders: Massimo Ambrosini (AC Milan), Mauro Camoranesi (Juventus), Daniele De Rossi (AS Roma), Gennaro Gattuso (AC Milan), Simone Perrotta (AS Roma), Andrea Pirlo (AC Milan).

Forwards: Antonio Di Natale (Udinese Calcio), Alberto Gilardino (AC Milan), Vincenzo Iaquinta (Juventus), Cristiano Lucarelli (FC Shakhtar Donetsk), Raffaele Palladino (Juventus), Fabio Quagliarella (Udinese Calcio), Luca Toni (FC Bayern München).

Continue to the rest of this post… »

Categories: Azzurri, Euro 2008
1 Comment »

(Euro 2008: Camoranesi is healed, but…)

Just yesterday, I posted that Italy/Juve midfielder Mauro Camoranesi was hurt, and would subsequently miss the qualifier against Scotland on November 17th.

Well, Mauro wasn’t having any of that ‘hurt’ business, apparently. I don’t know how he did it (vitamins? acupuncture? visit w/ monks? Wheaties? zuppa di pollo?), but the man who was the center of that bizarre post-WC final pow-wow/haircut has apparently made the recovery to end all recoveries, and will be at The Don’s disposal this Saturday.

Hopefully, The Don will do the right thing and bring Mauro north.

In other news, Gilardino, who has recently played the role of brace-maker during Milan’s away matches, is nursing an ankle injury. I couldn’t find anything on the seriousness of the injury, but since Channel 4 made Camo’s bruise sound life-and-death, I’m not sure what to think about Gila’s deal.

Regardless, if The Don goes with a single-striker formation against Scotland it will probably feature Toni (not Gilardino) up front anyway. If The Don’s old-schoolness prevails, however, and he sends in a 4-4-2 or some other blast from the past, it would be nice to have Gila paired with Toni up front. (Of course, it is The Don we’re talking about, so if we see the ol’4-4-2, old-school rules dictate pairing a tall guy with a little guy, and both Toni and Gila are tall… so that’ll never happen under The Don’s watch. Grrrrrrrr.)

Categories: Azzurri, Euro 2008, injuries
No Comments »

(Time for Scotland!)

While it’s true that there are Serie A matches to be played before November 17th, the biggest news over the coming week will likely pertain to the Scotland - Italy Euro 2008 Qualifier. That said, until this critical match is behind us, I plan on rounding up related news and posting it here on serieAmerica. To that end, here are two noteworthy pieces to get us started:

Scotland Announces its Squad

While The Don hasn’t announced Italy’s squad yet, Alex McLeish, Scotland’s manager, has named the 25 gents that will welcome the Azzurri next Saturday. Of the lot, only four are aged 30 or older, and all play for UK-based teams. Here they are, along with their respective clubs:

Continue to the rest of this post… »

Categories: Azzurri, Euro 2008
1 Comment »

Wow. Just… wow. This guy is a real piece of work! Just when I thought he was done spewing controversy, the coach of Les Bleus, Raymond Domenech, fires a verbal volley in Italy’s general direction. Apparently, earning a ban last time around didn’t result in a more verbally disciplined Frenchman.

Indeed, he’s chosen to continue with his mouth-running, but this time, he’s targeting Italy’s style of play. The funny part is that (and I don’t think Domenech realizes this) if anything, his comments will probably serve to motivate the Azzurri, and if you remember yesterday’s post, you know that Italy can really use an extra motivating factor these days, especially since they learned that they only need 4 points over the next two matches.

So, thanks, Ray! We need more gems like this, if you’ve got ‘em:

“How will Scotland v. Italy finish? A draw, because Italians know how to do that. If I had to bet on it, I would put everything on it finishing level.”

Suuuuuuure. Keep telling our ragazzi that they’re draw specialists, and we’ll see what transpires.

Forza Italia!

Categories: Azzurri, Euro 2008
No Comments »

Georgia 2-0 Scotland.

Yep. People seem pretty relieved, and quite frankly, if it was just about any other team, I’d be right there with them enjoying that relief… and who would blame us? Assuming Italy locks down three points at the Faroe Islands’ expense, all they’ll need from their November tie with Scotland is a draw and the single point that comes with it (as Chris so succinctly explained).

Isn’t that great?

Well, forgive me for not chalking in a “done deal” next to “qualify for Euro ‘08″ just yet.

Continue to the rest of this post… »

Categories: Azzurri, Euro 2008
2 Comments »