Azzurri v Lithuania: Heaven Help Us

Before we get into the state of Azzurri affars, I’d like to say I’ll be taking over the duties as Italian national team correspondent. My name’s Chris and I also run the AS Roma wing of The Offside. I’ve been given the reigns of the Italian squad because Roma doesn’t have any money and I have nothing to write about for the rest of the summer but shady transfer rumors that won’t come true and how great Totti is (seriously, he’s real good). Though I was born in America I bleed red, white and green (and House of Savoy blue) from both sides of my family and am looking forward to moving back to the old country in the near future. Therefore, you can expect completely biased and unabashed love-notes for the Azzurri. So, with out further ado, the obligatory………..

CAMPIONI DEL MONDO!!!!

Now that we’ve gotten that out of the way, if you saw the Faroe Islands game, I’m sorry. If you didn’t, stop bragging you lucky stiff. I wrote a little running diary while I was watching the game for the Roma section and the summation of the game for me was: 2 hours of blah (if you want to read it, it’s here, not sure I recommend it). The boys complained about the weather, the fog, the pitch, the tactics of the Faroe Islands, their own play, their motivation, the laundry, the toothpaste in the sink and everything else under the sun. In other words, they collectively turned into my girlfriend within hours after the game. I’m not going to go into much detail, but let’s just point out a few things:
a) The finishing was horrendous, even from Inzaghi. He should’ve had at least 4 being the only guy playing up top (I think it was a 4-3-3 Donadoni just didn’t want to admit it).
b) The wing play was alright, and the service was decent, but no one could get a proper header off in the box and really squandered a lot of chances. One of the most glaring observations of the game is how much they miss Luca Toni.
c) Two strange tactical movements were the positioning of Pirlo and Del Piero. Donadoni claimed it was a 4-2-3-1 (which would’ve meant he was playing Rocchi in the midfield) but it still really looked more like a 4-3-3. Del Piero was playing out on the wings but wasn’t really effective until he moved inside to a central position where he could create. Pirlo was also drifting out left when he should’ve been staying put in a holding position, distributing the ball like few in the world.
d) Aimo Diana was impressive considering he hasn’t played on the nazionale for two years, even though it was injuries that kept him out of Germany. But I think history has proven how dynamic Rino and De Rossi are in the midfield together. Neither one of them care who they play, they want to destroy everyone (as evidenced by Rino being thisclose to seeing red). Italia could’ve used that fire.
e) The defense was adequate. They shut down what they needed to shut down. Oddo and Tonetto got down the field well but the problems were in the center of the front third. I won’t say anything about the goal. It has to be one of the lowest moments of Gigi’s career and after all he’s done he can have a few of those without judgement. Oddo screwed up, he knows it, moving on.

In short: Toni, Totti, De Rossi, Zambrotta and Nesta would’ve helped. But the Azzurri B squad, the U-21’s all the way down the U-17’s should’ve handed out a spanking all game long, nevermind the “A” squad. They need to come out like 11 Gattuso’s against Lithuania to prove the pundits (and us not so expert people) wrong.

I’ll tackle the whole Nesta/Totti and FIGC situation at some point soon, but let me just say this: Both have served the Azzurri for at least 9 years, fought through injury to play when they shouldn’t and helped deliver a World Cup trophy. They can both call their shots. Period.

And the FIGC should know better by now, you do not screw with the monstrosity that is Totti’s ego.

LITHUANIA:
I think it’s fairly safe to say that Donadoni is on the hot seat, and if the team repeats a result like last year against Lithuania(1-1 draw) or worse, then the whole boot will be calling for his head. And they’ll probably get it. Considering the problem is supposedly motivation, and Lippi was the great motivator, the FIGC might be looking around for a “future Lippi” as we speak. I wouldn’t be surprised because Donadoni doesn’t have a stellar coaching background filling up his resume. Actually, he doesn’t have much of a coaching background at all.

As for that stellar Donadoni debut, there was a lot going against the Italians; the season had been pushed back and players weren’t in form, plenty of A-team members weren’t back yet, the World Cup hangover and Donadoni to name a few. The Lithuania defense has been spectacular, allowing 5 goals in 6 games, but their offense doesn’t exactly take advantage with only 4 goals scored. Considering the strength of Italy is supposed to be the defense and how angry they must be to have conceded on Saturday, Lithuania really should not score. The problem will be creating chances and capitalizing on those chances. If they can put as many balls up high into the box, at least a couple should go in, because the law of averages has to come into play at some point.

The lineup:
The Don Doni was experimenting with a “4-2-3-1″ (or more like a 4-3-3) and it remains to be seen how much he liked what he saw tactically and whether or not he’ll stick with the same formation. Judging by the reports, if he sticks with it he might be experimenting with his employment status. Let’s guess that he goes with that 4-3-3, here’s how it might shake out:
Defense: Canna will start, but considering Matterazzi’s yellow and his supposed injury in the FI game, I would not be surprised to see Barzagli get the nod. Zambrotta is back and will replace either Oddo or Tonetto. Both did well getting down the flanks during the game but Oddo made the mistake that led to the goal and it could mean his spot. Gigi is here until Gigi says he’s not, probably circa 2014. That sound in the background is Marco Amelia hitting his head against the wall repeatedly.
Midfield: Gattuso and Pirlo will start, and Ambrosini is fit so it may be an all Milan midfield. Though Diana did well and De Rossi is on the bench wondering what the hell Donadoni is thinking. Perrotta is also chomping at the bit and wondering where the hell Lippi went. If Donadoni goes with a 4-4-2 Perrotta and De Rossi/Ambrosini will likely make their way into the lineup. Otherwise, I have no idea what The Don Doni will do. I have a sneaking suspicion he’ll start Ambrosini but I think they need a little more creative flair than he would provide. Oh, and if you didn’t know, Donadoni spent most of his career at Milan. Homer.
Forwards: As much as I loathe him, Pippo can’t be benched right now, the goals speak for themselves (even if he missed a few gimme’s Saturday). Del Piero was able to create well against Faroe Islands and should be on the field again. I don’t see how The Don Doni can justify starting Rocchi again, his best asset during the FI game was going to ground and winning free-kicks. Quagliarella did really well in the whole 5 minutes he played and has to be considered. Lucarelli did nothing to warrant consideration and really missed at least two good chances. They created the chances this weekend, they just couldn’t finish them so he’ll likely stick with three up front but change the personnel.

Whatever lineup The Don Doni does put out, a few things have to change. The finishing has to get better, they should’ve scored at least 5 against the Faroe Islands. The wing play and service into the box was fairly good, but they didn’t have a Luca Toni like figure in the middle to knock in headers. The Lucarelli substitution was definitely for this reason, except Cristian had cement overshoes on during the game for some reason. If they aren’t going to finish those balls up high, they need to swich the tactics and create from the middle of the pitch with 1-2’s and accurate through balls. Unfortunately, Donadoni does what Donadoni wants. So, they’ll likely pull the same stuff against Lithuania and, unless they can improve the finishing greatly, they’ll struggle to get 3 points again.

Predicted Lineup: Gigi; Oddo, Canna, Barzagli, Zambrotta; Gattuso, Pirlo, De Rossi; Del Piero, Inzaghi, Quagliarella.

Score Prediction: 1-0 Azzurri. And something tells me it won’t be enough to save Donadoni’s fate. Thankfully.

Update: About 19 seconds after I posted this channel4 Calcio Italia released the supposed starting XI, luckily, it’s vastly different and the Roma trio are in the lineup:
Gigi; Zambrotta, Canna, Materazzi, Tonetto; De Rossi, Pirlo, Perrotta; Quagliarella, Inzaghi, Di Natale.

Kudos to Donadoni for giving everyone a wake up call and shaking things up.