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The Amauri Saga Is FINALLY Over

January 31st, 2009 | By: Julian | 23 Comments »

After what feels like years of wondering if Italy or Brazil will call him up, Dunga made the announcement today: Amauri is getting a call up in place of the injured Luis Fabiano.

So, basically, this whole saga that played out like the final episode of the Bachelor (Which girl will he pick? Only this time, the girls were national soccer teams) is over. The Goal.com article that I linked above does say that Juve have to approve releasing him, and if they don’t there’s still a shot that he could be called up to play for us. But I see no reason why Juve wouldn’t approve of it.

I for one couldn’t be happier that it ended this way. As I said many times before, Amauri is a tremendous striker, and he’s great as a prima punta up front. I wish Luca Toni was playing like he is. But he’s just not Italian. And with the guys we have waiting in the wings- Quags, Rossi, Acquafresca, Rebelotelli- calling up Amauri would just be a slap in the face of Italian youth. And finally, let’s remember that this was Amauri’s wish all along. How can you blame him? He’s Brazilian.

At the end of the day, let’s just look at this for what it is. A Brazilian man was called up to play for the Brazilian national team, just as he dreamed of it. I don’t think we need him on the Azzurri, nor should we want him. Our national team would lose identity if there’s no Italian backround in the players.

Tags: Acquafresca, Amauri, Brazil, Dunga, Group E, Italy, Lippi, Luca Toni, Quags, Rebelotelli, Rossi

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Comments

By mele419 | January 31st, 2009 at 12:55 pm

I don’t think we need him on the Azzurri, nor should we want him. Our national team would lose identity if there’s no Italian backround in the players. I agree 110% and I’m glad its been settled

Posted from United States

By kappa | January 31st, 2009 at 1:03 pm

Thank God. Keep the Italian national team for the Italians. He didn’t want us and we don’t want him.

Posted from Canada

By matthew | January 31st, 2009 at 2:52 pm

I like Amauri but he was being a bit a bitch about national play, you know?

“Well fine, if Brazil doesn’t want me i’ll play for Italy, humph >:( *arms crossed*”

He didn’t have any conviction to play for the Azzurri and that’s something I would hate to see on any National team.

I’m not Italian either, i just happen to love Italian football, but I still think it’s a shitty attitude to have.

By Jeff | January 31st, 2009 at 3:45 pm

It’s about time this whole thing ended!

Posted from United States

By Darth | January 31st, 2009 at 6:53 pm

I’m sorry to tell you that you are wrong Camoranesi isn’t much of an Italian, but that didn’t mean that Italy’s NT was less Italian. But yes, it’s better for Amauri to play for Brazil because he wanted to play there.

By Julian | January 31st, 2009 at 7:07 pm

It might not be over after all: Juve have refused to let Amauri go, claiming that it’s too late.

Great. This is becoming a really crappy soap opera.

Posted from United States

By mele419 | January 31st, 2009 at 7:59 pm

Darth – Camoranesi does have Italian blood through his grandparents.

Posted from United States

By Michel-Olivier(Slider) | January 31st, 2009 at 9:11 pm

amauri should accept the call from dunga, he said “I want the national team of my own country. It’s always been a dream since I was a child”.

@ Darth
most argentine(especially footballers) have italian heritage and most of them hold italian passport(eu citizenship to play in europe).
buonanotte, messi, zuculini, di maria, camoranesi, milito, lavezzi, cavenaghi, zanetti…. all sound italian to me.

Posted from United States

By kappa | January 31st, 2009 at 9:39 pm

Yeah but that means all the Italians all over the world who weren’t born in Italy aren’t Italian. If you have Italian grandparents then you are more than eligible. Amauri however had a wife who’s great grandmother was partly Italian, not to mention he looked at the Azzurri as second choice so I don’t want to see his face.

Posted from Canada

By Luca | January 31st, 2009 at 10:42 pm

amauridiganao.wordpress.com

By Bobo | February 1st, 2009 at 2:18 am

ALL of the oriundi had Italian parents or at least one set of grandparents. The Italian identity is not tied to the soil itself but rather to the blood that courses through one’s veins. Take Fernando Forestieri for example… child of Sicilians born in Argentina. He has every right to claim that he is as Italian as I am, and I was born in and spent almost my entire life in Reggio Emilia. Nota bene: With the advent of immigration, exceptions to this rule of blood can and should be made for folks like Balotelli or Angelo Ogbonna of Torino.

Once and for all, these arguments disputing the “Italianness” of the children and grandchildren of immigrants due to the fact that they were not born in Italy are merely imposing New World ideologies (countries like the US can’t really assign citizenship based on heritage so they tie it to the soil) onto the Old World. Europe has NEVER worked like this and, with a few exceptions, it most likely never will.

Case in point: a very good friend of mine was born in Basel, Switzerland to Spanish immigrants. He visits his family in Spain at least 4 times a year and is moving there for good next summer. He only has Spanish citizenship and if you were to ask him what he was, he’d say very proudly that he is a Spaniard. Accidents of life like the place one is born in can often have very little impact on identity. In my experience, particularly with the children of immigrants (Spanish, Italian, etc.) who relocated to another European country, ethnic identity very much trumps the birth certificate.

By gianfranco | February 1st, 2009 at 7:01 am

Julian, any thoughts on DiVaio getting a call up? 14 goals to his name on a mediocre club has to account for something.

By gianfranco | February 1st, 2009 at 7:02 am

he has certainly proved way more than Balotelli and Aquafresca.

By lev lucien | February 1st, 2009 at 7:27 am

Juve blocked his call up?

Posted from United States

By Julian | February 1st, 2009 at 11:42 am

DiViao has me divided. He’s got an incredible amount of goals but at his age, I’m not sure it’s right to give him his first ever cap. He’d have to adjust to the Azzurri and how long would he realistically play for? I’m just not sure what Lippi would do with him, and I’d understand either way if he did or didn’t get a call up.

That being said I believe we should be breeding a great team for the present and also for the future, and a 32 year old whose never played for Italy before wouldn’t figure into my plans.

Posted from United States

By alessio | February 2nd, 2009 at 5:02 am

no divaio………miccoli instead

Posted from Spain

By MAD | February 2nd, 2009 at 1:16 pm

“he has certainly proved way more than Balotelli and Aquafresca.”

… or Boriello…

B-D

By Weston | February 2nd, 2009 at 2:52 pm

del piero, toni, gilardino, hows guiseppe rossi been doing lately?

Posted from United States

By gianfranco | February 2nd, 2009 at 6:53 pm

MAD, Borriello is an interesting arguement as he scored a ton in Serie A last season, he would be on my list before Balotelli and Acquafresca, it just leads the question how much does being the score leader in Serie A count towards your National team ticket?

By matteo | February 2nd, 2009 at 9:05 pm

julian, di vaio has 14 azzurri caps to his namee

Posted from Canada

By Julian | February 2nd, 2009 at 10:05 pm

Sorry matteo, should’ve said “first cap in five years”

Posted from United States

By Samuel | February 2nd, 2009 at 10:52 pm

Rossi is injured and thus unavailable. i think Aquafresca should be given a go, he seems to be in wonderful form for Cagliari. Amauri should just show up at Brazils training camp have a stretch along with Robinho and Pato and end this Nightmare soap opera! whats wrong with Juve though they have Catania coming up, with the likes of Iaquinta, Del Pierro, Giovinco and Trez it cant seriously hurt to realease Amauri.

Posted from United States

By kappa | February 3rd, 2009 at 9:37 pm

I agree 100% with what you said Bobo

Posted from Canada

Comments are closed