Finally, Some Real News

I know you guys have been waiting for some actual news as much as I have, so let’s jump right into it.

First things first- we’ve got a friendly against Brazil at the Emirates on February 10th. I’m hoping that this’ll be broadcasted on TV considering it’s at the Emirates. On the other hand, I’m pretty sure England is playing and considering the hard on that ESPN has for England, expect that to be on TV instead. Either way, it should be a cracking game. It’ll be interesting to see if Amauri plays- and which side of the picth he shows up on.

And the Azzurrini have a friendly next week on Tuesday against Germany. Should be a good game and good practice for the Championships next year. Here’s the squad that was called up:

Goalkeepers: Consigli (Atalanta), Sirigu (Ancona)
Defenders: Andreolli (Sassuolo), Bocchetti (Genoa), Criscito (Genoa), De Ceglie (Juventus), De Silvestri (Lazio), Motta (Udinese), Santacroce (Napoli)
Midfielders: Bolzoni (Inter), Candreva (Livorno), Dessena (Sampdoria), Giovinco (Juventus), Morosini (Vicenza), Cerci (Atalanta)
Strikers: Acquafresca (Cagliari), Balotelli (Inter), Lanzafame (Palermo), Osvaldo (Fiorentina)

Absolutely stacked. Our future’s in good hands with a team like that.

New FIFA rankings are out and we’re down to third. Spain and Germany are above us. I don’t really see the point in these things but 3rd’s not bad. This month’s ranking actually took into account recent results, so the drop is probably because of the 0-0 draw with Bulgaria.

Maybe most importantly, my schedule is finally freeing up a bit so I’ll be back to blogging daily from now on. Thanks for all the great tips on what to blog about when news is slow.