Post by Taxigirl on Dec 10, 2005 9:55:28 GMT
www.channel4.com/sport/football_italia/dec9j.html
Marcello Lippi was relatively happy with Italy’s draw, but warned that failure to top Group E will see them run into Brazil in the second round.
“We don’t want to say that we are superior to our opponents in Group E, but without any false modesty, we can safely say that Italy have an excellent chance of qualifying on top and are certainly not inferior to these teams,” said the Coach.
Both the Czech Republic and the USA are ahead of Italy in the FIFA World Rankings right now.
The Azzurri will open their World Cup campaign against newcomers Ghana on June 12 in Hanover, then take on the USA in Kaiserslautern on June 17 before finishing with a probable head to head battle for the leadership with the Czech Republic in Hamburg on June 22.
However, there is an extra incentive to top the Group, as the second-placed side will take on the winners of Group F – likely to be reigning World Champions Brazil.
“I am by no means disappointed with the draw, as anyone we picked out of the urn would’ve been tricky. We know that if we win the group then we’ll avoid Brazil, but if we don’t then we will most likely face the South Americans immediately.”
Even if they do top Group E and get through to the quarter-finals, there is the chance they will find France at that stage. It would be a repeat of the 1998 quarters, which Les Bleus won on penalties on their way to the trophy.
There are several familiar faces in the squads Italy will be taking on, such as Pavel Nedved, Tomas Ujfalusi, Samuel Kuffour and Sulley Ali Muntari.
“International Coaches do not know every player on the planet, but we have seven months to find out their characteristics, strengths and weaknesses. If we do lose a game, it won’t be because we didn’t know about our opponents,” assured Lippi.
Italy will require some long journeys to get around Germany for the Group phase, but the tactician maintained he would not be changing his plans.
“We chose a base because its sporting facilities suited us, so we have no intention of changing that just to avoid a slightly longer journey for one match. We’ll reveal the place we chose and the reasons for that at a later date, but we are close to an airport.”
It will be the Azzurri’s first ever encounter with Ghana, who have won the African Nations' Cup four times, while their record against the USA is of six wins, two draws and not a single defeat. The most recent was a 1-0 friendly victory on February 13 2002, while Italy also won by the same scoreline in the opening game of the 1990 World Cup.
The Czech Republic remains unbeaten by the Italian outfit, with two victories for the Eastern European nation and one draw. While two have been friendlies, there was also a 2-1 win for the Czechs in Euro ’96, where Italy failed to qualify past the group phase.
“I think that we can safely say this is a tough Group,” said FIGC Vice-President Giancarlo Abete. “The presence of Brazil in the draw for the second round is also an extra problem, so we cannot afford any slip-ups and absolutely must win the Group to stave off the risk of running into the Selecao.”
“We need to be in Germany at least five days before the opening game in Hanover on June 12, but Lippi does not want to get there too early. Duisburg is an option that has been discussed and we’ll look at it in more depth over the next few days.”
Group E KO (BST)
12/6/06 Italy v Ghana Hanover 1500
12/6/06 USA v Czech Republic Gelsenkirchen 1800
17/6/06 Italy v USA Kaiserslautern 1800
17/6/06 Czech Republic v Ghana Cologne 2100
22/6/06 Czech Republic v Italy Hamburg 1600
22/6/06 Ghana v USA Nuremburg 1600
Marcello Lippi was relatively happy with Italy’s draw, but warned that failure to top Group E will see them run into Brazil in the second round.
“We don’t want to say that we are superior to our opponents in Group E, but without any false modesty, we can safely say that Italy have an excellent chance of qualifying on top and are certainly not inferior to these teams,” said the Coach.
Both the Czech Republic and the USA are ahead of Italy in the FIFA World Rankings right now.
The Azzurri will open their World Cup campaign against newcomers Ghana on June 12 in Hanover, then take on the USA in Kaiserslautern on June 17 before finishing with a probable head to head battle for the leadership with the Czech Republic in Hamburg on June 22.
However, there is an extra incentive to top the Group, as the second-placed side will take on the winners of Group F – likely to be reigning World Champions Brazil.
“I am by no means disappointed with the draw, as anyone we picked out of the urn would’ve been tricky. We know that if we win the group then we’ll avoid Brazil, but if we don’t then we will most likely face the South Americans immediately.”
Even if they do top Group E and get through to the quarter-finals, there is the chance they will find France at that stage. It would be a repeat of the 1998 quarters, which Les Bleus won on penalties on their way to the trophy.
There are several familiar faces in the squads Italy will be taking on, such as Pavel Nedved, Tomas Ujfalusi, Samuel Kuffour and Sulley Ali Muntari.
“International Coaches do not know every player on the planet, but we have seven months to find out their characteristics, strengths and weaknesses. If we do lose a game, it won’t be because we didn’t know about our opponents,” assured Lippi.
Italy will require some long journeys to get around Germany for the Group phase, but the tactician maintained he would not be changing his plans.
“We chose a base because its sporting facilities suited us, so we have no intention of changing that just to avoid a slightly longer journey for one match. We’ll reveal the place we chose and the reasons for that at a later date, but we are close to an airport.”
It will be the Azzurri’s first ever encounter with Ghana, who have won the African Nations' Cup four times, while their record against the USA is of six wins, two draws and not a single defeat. The most recent was a 1-0 friendly victory on February 13 2002, while Italy also won by the same scoreline in the opening game of the 1990 World Cup.
The Czech Republic remains unbeaten by the Italian outfit, with two victories for the Eastern European nation and one draw. While two have been friendlies, there was also a 2-1 win for the Czechs in Euro ’96, where Italy failed to qualify past the group phase.
“I think that we can safely say this is a tough Group,” said FIGC Vice-President Giancarlo Abete. “The presence of Brazil in the draw for the second round is also an extra problem, so we cannot afford any slip-ups and absolutely must win the Group to stave off the risk of running into the Selecao.”
“We need to be in Germany at least five days before the opening game in Hanover on June 12, but Lippi does not want to get there too early. Duisburg is an option that has been discussed and we’ll look at it in more depth over the next few days.”
Group E KO (BST)
12/6/06 Italy v Ghana Hanover 1500
12/6/06 USA v Czech Republic Gelsenkirchen 1800
17/6/06 Italy v USA Kaiserslautern 1800
17/6/06 Czech Republic v Ghana Cologne 2100
22/6/06 Czech Republic v Italy Hamburg 1600
22/6/06 Ghana v USA Nuremburg 1600