Italia: La Nazionale II

Xifio wrote:these fickle, and frankly boorish, "fans" and players blaming Balotelli in any way shape or form are a ****ing disgrace ...

these two quotes say everything I would want to say about the bullsh!t scapegoating using Mario, and the bullsh!t neglecting of how everyone else played like crap:

Forza wrote:Balotelli scored the winner against England, then he had an extremely poor game against Costa Rica and a very poor first half against Uruguay. But what about that second half against Uruguay? Parolo comes on and Italy is playing just as badly. Immobile was completely out of sorts and the only person making any attempt to do anything even mildly interesting to prevent me from falling asleep was Verratti. Point being, whilst Balo must take some blame, he cannot be made the scapegoat for Italy's failure at this World Cup or for the results against Uruguay or Costa Rica.

Forza wrote:The problem with playing possession football is that unless you are creating numerous goal scoring chances, you are always at risk of the counter or the odd goal from a set piece. Playing possession football is great IF you know how to do it right and Italy showed in those 2 games exactly how it shouldn't be done. There was no pressing in the final third, there was no intensity in the midfield, and there was no pace to move the ball around quickly so as to put defenders out of position. These are the essentials for effective possession football.

what everyone seems to have forgotten is that 0-0 was good enough ... Balotelli didn't score? fine! it'd be better if he did, but goals aren't what were needed! keeping a clean sheet was what was needed! that's it! qualification would be secure! why the **** is that not being talked about?!

So in your opinion, Buffon and De Rossi are fickle, boorish and disgrace? Well said, Comrade   

Most players looked tired and uninspired. No winning spirit or even team spirit. Younger and more hungier players must be called upon - Destro, Florenzi etc.

Balotelli is not a team player, to selfish both on and off the pitch. Hopefully a young manager will take Italys hotseat. not old farts like Mancini or talentless peoples like Allegri

I vote for Montella.

Xifio wrote:

Tomwin Lannister wrote:Balo is obviously not the only reason Italy failed. But he's too lazy and reckless and he's a complete joke who should be dropped until he proves himself at club level. Watching him sulk around the pitch doing fk all then using none of his strength and falling over is ridiculous.

sure, drop him and play someone else for the rest of the world cup ... oh, what's that? failed to make it? why? didn't Italy only need 0-0? couldn't keep a clean sheet? that's Balotelli's fault too? I see ...

Maybe i'm old fashioned but I expect strikers to actually hold the ball up and not hit the floor crying every time a man half their *bleep* size starts grabbing them.

But nah DDR and Buffon don't know what they're talking about, all the people talking about Balotelli know nothing and he's actually a great player who's fully committed to the team.

Pls go

The man ran 2KM more than the *bleep* Australian GK

flameas wrote:Most players looked tired and uninspired. No winning spirit or even team spirit. Younger and more hungier players must be called upon - Destro, Florenzi etc.

Balotelli is not a team player, to selfish both on and off the pitch. Hopefully a young manager will take Italys hotseat. not old farts like Mancini or talentless peoples like Allegri

I vote for Montella.

Montella would be an awesome choice imo too...

@Tom:

I'm not saying don't criticize Balotelli; I'm asking you where your criticism of **anyone** else (by name) is?

Italy did NOT need goals versus Uruguay ... they needed a clean sheet! if Balotelli doesn't score, and the rest of the team delivers a clean sheet, please, by all means, rail on him all day! but they didn't deliver a clean sheet! THAT is why Italy is out ...

if you're old-fashioned, and you don't criticize an Italian defence with FIVE defenders incapable of holding off Uruguay, then you're only proving your bias in scapegoating here ....

I've criticized a few players. Abate, Motta, Chiellini (After CR game) and Immobile amongst them. Hell i've made my opinions on Prandelli at International level well known.

As for defending, well setting up for a draw against a Uruguay with 2 World class attackers was always going to be stupid, and the goal same from a set piece anyway. At least the other players who had bad games were actually giving their all for the team and putting effort in. Balotelli was his usual fed up, whining self barely offering any movement whatsoever and choosing to fling himself to the floor instead of holding the ball up and allowing the team to push forward. His miss against CR was terrible too, cancels out the England winner tbh.

His general play is pathetic, no wonder he infuriates players and managers wherever he goes.

I'd personally love Italy to return to catenaccio, i'd LOVE it. Whatever system comes next, Balotelli should be no part of it unless he changes completely. Which he's apparently incapable of doing.

Xifio wrote:@Tom:

I'm not saying don't criticize Balotelli; I'm asking you where your criticism of **anyone** else (by name) is?

Italy did NOT need goals versus Uruguay ... they needed a clean sheet! if Balotelli doesn't score, and the rest of the team delivers a clean sheet, please, by all means, rail on him all day! but they didn't deliver a clean sheet! THAT is why Italy is out ...

if you're old-fashioned, and you don't criticize an Italian defence with FIVE defenders incapable of holding off Uruguay, then you're only proving your bias in scapegoating here ....

What kind of logic is that? Even kids don't reason like that. People are criticizing Balotelli for his crap performance through out and shitty attitude. The guy is dimwit with a four year old IQ. He is overrated sh*t of a player. Deal with that.

Btw it's worth noting Italy only conceded 3 goals in 3 games. It's not like it was a defensive calamity that the attack simply couldn't bail out.

The attacking thread was simply non existent. On one side, Balo offers no movement whatsoever, on the other Immobile and Co came on and were offside every 15 seconds.

Montella is an excellent call. He or Lippi would be my choices. Also wouldnt be against giving Spaletti a chance.

Votes according Sky Italy.


why hell Chiellini is among promoted after that match against Costa Rica ?

juventus101 wrote:Montella is an excellent call. He or Lippi would be my choices. Also wouldnt be against giving Spaletti a chance.

Lippi ?!? lol

Chiellini was crap in the first half against CR but he also pocketed Suarez and Cavani quite easily. Whenever Suarez was near him he was completely useless. In fact, Bonucci was just as good in that match

For me the only real positive from this WC for Italy is Verratti. He's already good enough to start, so he's probably a certainty in midfield for the next few WCs if all goes well.

Chiellini was the worst player against Costa Rica and it was a decisive loss for our elimination . So I can't rate himn as promoted , but the contrary
while I agree about Buffon , Verratti , Pirlo , Marchisio ( that red card is an error for me ) , Barzagli, Sirigu
And I don't know if really I wouild have put Bonucci on "middle" (not promoted neither failed) , Italian medias have pointed out as he had to mark Godin on Uruguay's goal...

Let's not forget Italy didn't score a single goal against CR despite Pirlo putting Balo through for a chance half this forum would've burried.

Should have really been scoring a couple of goals against them, there's no excuse for the attack either.

infact the attack is totally failed , agree with Sky about it.
but while I can justify Barzagli and Buffon , I can't do same thing for Chiellini .. imo

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/BrAG746CYAAg18X.jpg

italy are shit. its really that simple.

garbage like chiellini and barzagli in defense. average fb's, retards in attack. unbelievable really. last 3 halfs of play, italy created nothing.

I have been saying this for years Chiellini is horrendous and is a constant liability. My view of him is as a dumbed down version of Matterazzi. Our best defender is Bonuci and that says a lot about our current state in defense.

I am hoping and praying in the next 4 years Italy can pop out some great talents to replace these horrendous "professional" footballers who can't run for more than 60 minutes of football.

A fit Giu Rossi, for me, is better than Balotelli and Immobile. Whoever the next manager is should start with him as the main forward. Also SES should definitely start as well. Start building around those two for Euros. Unless Balo gets his shit together, which is unlikely, he shouldn't be called up. Hopefully Insigne starts improving.

Also Berardi >> Immobile.

Are Buffon and Pirlo retiring after this WC? The midfield should play to Verratti's strengths if so. Also for the love of god, stop calling up garbage players like Parolo, Montolivo, Aquilani and Candreva ffs. If you need engine men in the squad Marchisio can do that. And POLI needs to be called up ffs.

And Buffon should call it a day because Sirigu is criminally underrated and better than him at this point.

I do not think Barzagli is a bad defender (although, discussion of him is pointless now as he's going to be too old for any other tournament), but I have been not such a big fan of Chiellini tbh for a while. Regardless, our problem at the world cup was not in defense.

I agree with everything McAgger said, although, I don't know about Sirigu being better than Buffon, Buffon proved he's still got it at 36 and saved our asses big, particularly against Uruguay.

Italy to turn to youngsters
By Football Italia staff

The Gazzetta dello Sport indicate that Italy’s next competitive squad will feature a whole host of new faces, including a number of Under-21 players.

On from the Nazionale’s early exit from the 2014 World Cup, the suggestion has been that when the squad is next called together for competitive action in September for Italy’s 2016 European Championship qualifier with Norway, there will be a number of changes.

Mattia Destro, Stephan El Shaarawy and Alessandro Florenzi were all initially suggested as likely to drop into the set-up, but the Gazzetta dello Sport have added further names to that list.

Giuseppe Rossi is expected back in after missing the World Cup, whilst Andrea Ranocchia is also seen as likely to be a prominent ‘new’ name alongside the Fiorentina man and Florenzi.

The daily publication report they will be joined by the likes of Simone Zaza, Domenico Berardi, Manolo Gabbiadini, Angelo Ogbonna, Giacomo Bonaventura, Davide Astori, Romulo and other Under-21 capped players such as Daniele Rugani, Davide Zappacosta, Federico Bernardeschi and Daniele Baselli.


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Too good to be true

McLewis wrote:
Too good to be true

Hopefully not! I like a lot of the names mentioned there, incorporated alongside some of the current crop I think they will certainly bring some much needed creativity, pace and width in attack.

 

Also Rugani, Voted top defender in Serie B, look forward to seeing how he measures up in Serie A this season with Empoli.  

Nice, although there's no need to go crazy and stop using the players in their late 20s in favour of scrubs like Astori.

Nice

A new era

I like the idea of going all young and doing it around Rossi & El Shaarawy, Destro, Florenzi etc.

here's a remarkable thing you may or may not have noticed:
in just 3 games, Italy used up 21 out of 23 of our team. So yes, one of those is Perin, and the other is Aquilani   . So it's definitely the case that Prandelli was experimenting way too much at the world cup. think about it, that was the first time Immobile Balotelli partnership was tried, you don't try things for the first time at a world cup, that's what all of those friendlies are for. People like Cassano, Immobile, Verratti, etc. were all implemented way too late.

I am excited and scared for the future.

Some of the things people are saying about Balotelli is disgraceful.

Not you guys here, I have not read. But I have heard even former players saying some outrageous things.