Italy through, thoughts and player reviews

Random thoughts: – Pirlo was played more out on the left of the midfield 3, and DDR in the center. I thought this was a very strong tactical play. DDR was in the center breaking up everything, and this is the position where he really shines offensively. Putting him out on the side kind of limits his amount of turning on the ball, and spreading play, which hurts Italy when they try to keep possession. Pirlo can play anywhere across that middle 3, and I think this was his best game thus far. I give Donadoni the credit for realizing that DDR needs to be more central.

Cassano really hugged the touchline today. I would have liked to see a little more movement from him, but it was tough because we had so little possession. I really hope this doesn’t warrant him getting dropped from the starting lineup b/c when he gets the ball, anything can happen. His vision is among the best I’ve ever seen in the last 1/4 of the pitch. If Italy had a quick, sneaky CF to run onto his through passes we would all be applauding Cassano right now b/c he would have a good 3 assists.

On to the ratings…

Buffon – What a save on Benzema. What a celebration on Pirlo’s rigore. What a keeper. 9

Zambrotta – Kind of got bailed out in having to contain one of the best attackers in the world. Still had a very solid game, getting forward a bit, although I thought his crossing wasn’t as good as last game. Did what he had to do, and then some. Can’t really complain. I think he needs to step it up against Spain though. 7

Panucci – Looked a bit slow, but organized pretty well. That header in the first half was also gloriously close to resulting in Donadoni pulling Toni and letting Panucci play up top by himself. France did have quite a few chances though, and like the rest of the defense he will need to step it up. Sometimes I worry about Christian b/c he doesn’t close down his man right away, we’ll see how this plays out against the quick Spaniards. 6.5

Chiellini – Great athlete. Sometimes he doesn’t find himself in the best positions but his physicality and speed may make up for him getting beat off the first step. Did look shaky at times though (particularly on that shot Henry dragged wide), and made a great tackle on Henry that was called for a foul. Not even close to a foul. 7

Grosso – Didn’t get forward as much as last game, but he was doing a lot of work on the defensive side of the ball. Made a really good tackle on the byline that even had the ultra biased Andy Gray beaming and complimenting. Today was good practice because on Sunday he will have to deal with Sergio Ramos (hair flowing) overlaps and probably Cazorla/Iniesta as well. Pretty sure he’s not looking forward to that. Oh, great free kick today as well. For that he goes up to a 7.

Pirlo – The Pirlo of old. Serving up longish passes on fine china, giving Perrotta sitters, and buried the penalty with great confidence. Did some good work defensively too, and I actually thought he did a better job defensively than Gattuso. 8

DDR – UEFA motm award. Does it all. Goes on runs, bits of skill thrown in, good long passes, switches play well, and takes no prisoners in the center of the pitch. Bit lucky on the free kick goal, but he deserved it. I almost want to take points away though for that awful ink he’s got goin on. I’ve got a sinking feeling he hired this guy for the tattoo work. 9

Gattuso - I thought he was shit. Slow, fouled too much, poor positionally and rushed into opposing players when the rest of his team were trying to play containment. They simply beat him, and someone else would have to step to the player, freeing up someone else for the pass. I will probably get a lot of flack from Gianfranco and his band of merry Milanistas, but he was probably the worst Italian on the field. The amount of effort and heart he puts in will always make me smile, but I think we need a better option if we get past Spain. 5

Perrotta – Aside from him being completely useless once he even gets a sniff at goal, I thought he had an average/slightly above avg game. Closed down as best he could, and like usual, worked very hard. The few times he got the ball I thought he held possession well, which is all you can ask for, b/c Cassano was hugging the touchline and Toni had a few guys on him at all times. Really bad touch on that Pirlo ball though. 6.5

Cassano – Great through passes, and always looks to get his teammates involved. His ability on the ball is obvious to anyone watching (backheel to Zambro rings a bell), I just wish he would have tried to get more involved and get some more movement going. I think he has to start next game, simply for the fact that one moment of brilliance is just always possible with him. 6.5

Toni-no-gol – Missed a few decent chances including that one in the first half that made me cringe. Did win the penalty though with a ridiculous touch on a Pirlo long pass, and if he catches fire he will just start scoring in buckets. The isolation isn’t helping him out too much but I think he will find a more open game against the Spaniards, with more support from Cassano and the other attacking player. For that really bad miss though, he goes down to a 6. His constant complaining doesn’t help either.

Ambrosini – Did well in containment. That’s all you can really ask from the guy, so he’s ok in my book this time around. Also did well to try and keep possession late in the game, and had a few nice touch passes to make the French run circles trying to win the ball back. 6.5

Camoranesi - Pretty invisible. Just a pair of fresh legs I guess, which is what we needed at the time. 6

Aquilani – Not enough time to warrant a rating.

Donadoni – Besides the Gattuso start, I thought he did well. People may scoff at the Ambro for Pirlo sub, but we were up a man and they were tiring. Worked out fine in the end.