Italy hunts for strikers after double blow
Source: Agencies |
November 5, 2011, Saturday
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FIRST, Giuseppe Rossi went down with a serious knee injury. Now Antonio Cassano underwent heart surgery yesterday.
Italy coach Cesare Prandelli must be searching for answers after losing his two starting forwards just seven months before the European Championship.
After Italy's embarrassing first-round exit from the World Cup under previous coach Marcello Lippi, Prandelli has spent the last season and a half rebuilding the national team around Rossi and Cassano, two players that Lippi didn't take to South Africa.
The results were rewarding, as the Azzurri qualified for Euro 2012 with two games to spare and even beat World Cup holder and European champion Spain 2-1 in a friendly in August.
Cassano led Italy with six goals in qualifying and Rossi found the target once. But now Prandelli needs to construct an all-new attack. Possible replacements include Giampaolo Pazzini, Mario Balotelli and Antonio Di Natale.
Rossi tore the ACL in his right knee and will need about six months to recover from surgery last week, while Cassano is likely to be out for four to six months.
Cassano suffered from stroke-like symptoms following AC Milan's win over Roma at the weekend. His condition has sparked an outpouring of support, and Italian football federation president Giancarlo Abete was among those who visited the striker in the hospital on Wednesday.
Abete wouldn't speculate what the impact might be for the national team. "People's health comes first, everything else is secondary," Abete said. "What's important now is Antonio's complete recovery. When that will be, will be."
Starter's role
Pazzini has been Prandelli's first choice off the bench and is a natural candidate for a starter's role in friendlies against Poland on November 11 and Uruguay four days later.
The 21-year-old Balotelli is blossoming with Manchester City but is yet to score a goal in five appearances with Italy. The 34-year-old Di Natale has led Serie A in scoring the past two seasons and again tops the chart with seven goals after nine matches with Udinese this campaign, but Prandelli has never called him up.
Di Natale's last appearance with the national team came when he scored in a 2-3 loss to Slovakia that eliminated Italy from last year's World Cup. He has scored 10 goals in 36 appearances.
"If he maintains this form, I can't not take him into consideration for the Euros," Prandelli said of Di Natale.
Other options in attack include Roma forward Pablo Osvaldo, who made his national team debut in Italy's final qualifier against Northern Ireland last month.
Italy coach Cesare Prandelli must be searching for answers after losing his two starting forwards just seven months before the European Championship.
After Italy's embarrassing first-round exit from the World Cup under previous coach Marcello Lippi, Prandelli has spent the last season and a half rebuilding the national team around Rossi and Cassano, two players that Lippi didn't take to South Africa.
The results were rewarding, as the Azzurri qualified for Euro 2012 with two games to spare and even beat World Cup holder and European champion Spain 2-1 in a friendly in August.
Cassano led Italy with six goals in qualifying and Rossi found the target once. But now Prandelli needs to construct an all-new attack. Possible replacements include Giampaolo Pazzini, Mario Balotelli and Antonio Di Natale.
Rossi tore the ACL in his right knee and will need about six months to recover from surgery last week, while Cassano is likely to be out for four to six months.
Cassano suffered from stroke-like symptoms following AC Milan's win over Roma at the weekend. His condition has sparked an outpouring of support, and Italian football federation president Giancarlo Abete was among those who visited the striker in the hospital on Wednesday.
Abete wouldn't speculate what the impact might be for the national team. "People's health comes first, everything else is secondary," Abete said. "What's important now is Antonio's complete recovery. When that will be, will be."
Starter's role
Pazzini has been Prandelli's first choice off the bench and is a natural candidate for a starter's role in friendlies against Poland on November 11 and Uruguay four days later.
The 21-year-old Balotelli is blossoming with Manchester City but is yet to score a goal in five appearances with Italy. The 34-year-old Di Natale has led Serie A in scoring the past two seasons and again tops the chart with seven goals after nine matches with Udinese this campaign, but Prandelli has never called him up.
Di Natale's last appearance with the national team came when he scored in a 2-3 loss to Slovakia that eliminated Italy from last year's World Cup. He has scored 10 goals in 36 appearances.
"If he maintains this form, I can't not take him into consideration for the Euros," Prandelli said of Di Natale.
Other options in attack include Roma forward Pablo Osvaldo, who made his national team debut in Italy's final qualifier against Northern Ireland last month.
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