With history and form against them, there are no takers for the azzurris. but being away from the spotlight is what the defending champs prefer
With history and form against them, there are no takers for the azzurris. but being away from the spotlight is what the defending champs prefer
It's unusual to be the defending champions, having the second-best record in the competition and still not having any hype surrounding your team. But, it's not unusual when the team in question is Italy.
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| Cannavaro lifts the 2006 World Cup trophy in Germany. pics/afp |
Azzurri coach Marcello Lippi said yesterday that it was no concern to him that his reigning world champions were not among the favourites for World Cup glory.
Like in Germany in 2006, four-time champions Italy have enjoyed the spotlight being trained on other
contenders for the Cup.
History is also against the Italians ufffd no country has won back-to-back World Cups since Brazil in 1962.
Lippi's men, that includes nine players from the squad that triumphed four years ago in Berlin, were guarded by dozens of policemen as their plane touched down in Johannesburg.
They headed for Leriba Golf Lodge outside Pretoria to prepare for their opening Group F match against Paraguay in Cape Town on Monday.
Italy have rarely shone since their triumph against France in the 2006 final, but Italian Football Federation chief Giancarlo Abete insisted it would be a mistake to write them off.
"Italy are world champions, that should not be forgotten, but you cannot deny that other teams have done better than us in the last few years," Abete said during the flight to South Africa.
"For everyone the favourites are Brazil, Spain, Argentina and England, but we've got great belief," he added.
Lippi has lost key man Andrea Pirlo to a calf strain for the Paraguay game and the playmaker faces a race against time to be involved in any of the group games.
Italian Football Federation (FIGC) vice president Demetrio Albertini also warned doubters to write Italy off at their own peril, claiming a strong defence of the World Cup is sustainable. Fresh questions were raised over the Azzurri's credentials after they arrived here.
But Albertini, who was a member of the 1994 World Cup runners-up team, is feeding expectations as he fosters the campaign for success.
"There is a big group of favourite teams in South Africa, but Italy are also there," Albertini told mediapersons, adding: "This Italy group started off their journey two years ago and the players will play everything and have the potential to do well, even though there is always scepticism at the start."
