Tag: Italy

Jorginho’s Penalty Saves Italy In Nations League Debut

Italy, Nations League, Poland, The Azzurri
A controversial penalty converted by Jorginho allowed Italy to snatch one point out of their Nations League home debut with Poland. Coach Roberto Mancini’s trust in Mario Balotelli was not repaid last night in Bologna, and it took the entrance of Federico Chiesa to shake up an Azzurri side hit in the first half by Neapolitan midfielder Piotr Zielinksi.
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Azzurrini Lose to Portugal In Hard Fought Under 19 Final

Italy, Portugal, The Azzurri, Under 19
Come on, Italy, there is hope for the future. Coach Paolo Nicolato’s Azzurrini lost an incredibly entertaining Under 19 Championship Final in Seinajoki, Finland, succumbing 3-4 to Portugal after extra time. A double by Moise Kean and a header by Gianluca Scamacca were not enough for Italy to conquer the European throne again, 15 years after their last Under 19 win.
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Meteore Mondiali: Schillaci, Re Mida senza corona di Italia ’90

Argentina, Germany, Italy, Meanwhile In Moscow, The Azzurri, The Grass Is Greener, World Cup
As World Cup 1990 approached, Italy's coach Azeglio Vicini could lineup strikers such as Gianluca Vialli and Roberto Baggio. Still, he decided to add to his squad a little known Sicilian forward from Juventus. His name was Salvatore Schillaci, and he became the underdog King of the Notti Magiche ("Magic Nights") of Italia '90, scoring 6 goals and leading the Azzurri to the 3rd place.
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Meteore Mondiali: Grosso, l’uomo dell’ultimo minuto

France, Germany, Italy, Meanwhile In Moscow, The Azzurri, The Grass Is Greener, World Cup
“You will take the last penalty, because you have always been decisive so far.” This is what coach Marcello Lippi told Fabio Grosso before the penalty shootouts that determined the outcome of World Cup 2006 Final between Italy and France. Lippi’s choice to bet on a player who was not even part of his original starting lineup proved to be a winning one.
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Meteore Mondiali: Guivarc’h, il Campione del Mondo senza goal

Meanwhile In Moscow, The Grass Is Greener, World Cup
Sometimes, you make it to history not because of what you did, but of what you didn't do. The France squad that won World Cup 1998 featured strikers like Thierry Henry and David Trezeguet. Yet, their starting forward was Stephan Guivarc'h. Today's World Cup Meteor (Number 9 on the pitch, and in our countdown) is the striker who won a world title without scoring a goal.
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Forza Azzurre! The Italians That Made It to World Cup

Italy, The Azzurre, Women's World Cup 2019
There is one Italian National Team that made it to the football World Cup, even if we will have to wait one year to see it. Girl power restored our battered national pride yesterday as the Azzurre wrapped a sensational qualification to Women’s World Cup 2019 in France by beating Portugal 3-0, with goals by Cristiana Girelli, Cecilia Salvai, and Barbara Bonansea.
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Meanwhile In Moscow: No Love In Russia for Ibra

Italy, The Azzurre, Women's World Cup 2019
The World Cup is getting close, and even if we Italians may still be in denial about the fact that the Azzurri will be watching it from home, the greatest show on Earth will still take place. In our "Meanwhile In Moscow" column, Swedish correspondent Arjun Sethi reminds us about some other big name who will not go to Russia: Zlatan Ibrahimović, or simply Ibra.
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Coach Di Biagio Chooses Continuity: Buffon In, Balo Out

Di Biagio, Italy, The Azzurri
The revolution can wait. For his first convocations as interim head coach of the Italian Nazionale, Luigi Di Biagio chose to walk a conservative path. Those who were hoping for a complete cleanup among the Azzurri ranks after their shameful failure to qualify for the upcoming World Cup might be disappointed – and yet, the pool of human resources available to Di Biagio didn’t leave much room for different choices.
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