Provisional Squad “Leaked”…Maybe

I take these things with a grain of salt. Roberto Donadoni has done well lately keeping his cards close to his chest, though the one named “Alessandro Del Piero” keeps falling on the ground and he picks it up before anybody can get a definitive answer (JUST TELL US ALREADY, STOP THE MADNESS!).

Doesn’t stop it from becoming a nice little discussion point or interesting look into the (supposed) mind of The Don. Without further ado, here’s the supposed 29 man squad:

Goalkeepers: Abbiati, Amelia, Buffon

Defenders: Barzagli, Bonera, Cannavaro, Cassetti, Chiellini, Gamberini, Grosso, Materazzi, Oddo, Panucci, Tonetto, Zambrotta

Midfielders: Ambrosini, Aquilani, Camoranesi, De Rossi, Gattuso, Montolivo, Perrotta, Pirlo

Strikers: Del Piero, Di Natale, Borriello, Quagliarella, Toni, Rocchi

Defense is clearly the one which will be pared down the most and a clear indication as to what spot is the Azzurri’s toughest spot. Twelve is a good amount.

We can take a stab at the six who will go, and here goes:

Tommaso Rocchi: I really have no idea why he’s on this list. Utterly useless for the Azzurri, and he’s got a whopping 3 caps to fall back on. His name alone makes this list suspicious.

Max Tonetto: He’s been good this year, but not Azzurri good.

Alessandro Gamberini: You can call it a numbers game, with those numbers ahead of him being slightly better.

Marco Cassetti: Complete revelation for Roma this year, his second half has been slowed by injuries and he’s been forced to play in central defense the last few games, where just does not look good at all. Obviously Donadoni will ignore this as he’s a RB sometimes LB, not a CB, but for a fringe guy, it isn’t helping him make a case for his selection with some performances from the heavens in the last few weeks of the season.

Daniele Bonera: My head, heart and every inch of my body which wishes good fortune upon the Azzurri says that Bonera (or even Gamberini) should go and it’s time for The Matrix to be shoved off into international oblivion*. However, my gut says he’ll go.

* - Listen, when your club teams THREE best central defenders are unavailable and your coach is considering dropping you for numbers 5 & 6 in the most important game of the year, it’s time to hang them up because you suck.

Riccardo Montolivo: Aquilani or Montolivo? It’s going to be Aquilani, here’s why:

1. Alberto plays both ways and his attack is just as lethal as Montolivo’s.
2. Real Madrid. Aquilani looked like an absolute god in Spain, and the world sat up and took notice. Donadoni certainly did so as well.
3. Montolivo has a friendly cap, Aquilani has been a part of The Don’s starting XI.
4. This one’s most important: Montolivo is eligible for the summer Olympics, Alberto is not. Riccardo’s time in Swissaustria would almost surely be off the bench, while Aquilani is a real option. Montolivo’s time would be better served in Beijing perfecting his nazionale game, because we’re damn sure going to need him for the next eight years or so.

What are the chances this list is legit? I’d say 50/50. But it won’t be long before we find out the real 23 man squad.