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Euro 2008 TV

Viva la Espana! Champions of Europe!

Re-live the Euro 2008 Championship by selecting a match below or visiting the dedicated site Euro2008TV.com for articles, photos, and video highlights of your favorite team.

 

Italy Euro 2008 Online Streams and TV Schedules

#Date Time (US/Eastern) Match Result Stage Venue
Jun-09 02:30pm Netherlands - Italy 3:0 Group C Berne
Jun-13 11:50am Italy - Romania 1:1 Group C Zurich
Jun-17 02:30pm France - Italy 0:2 Group C Zurich
Jun-22 02:30pm Spain - Italy 4:2 Quarter-Finals Vienna

Italy at Euro 2008

Italy - Euro 2008

Group C

France
Italy
Netherlands
Romania
View all group C details
Team Italy - Euro 2008

World Champions looking for another feather in the cap

It took twenty-four years for Italy to become World Champions again, and now they will hope to follow that ultimate triumph with a European crown. Many feared the Azzurri would lack motivation for the Euro2008 qualifiers, and not without good reason. Italy did not qualify for the 1984 European Championships, which took place just two years after their 1982 World Cup triumph. However, after some initial toiling under new coach Roberto Donadoni, Italy topped their qualifying group, and now are one of the hot favourites to win Euro2008.   When Donadoni took over after coach Marcello Lippi, many doubted whether he was the man for the job.  Had Fabio Capello, who was coaching Real Madrid at the time, or Milan coach Carlo Ancelotti been available, the Italian federation would have certainly gone for one of them.  Donadoni thus cut a lonely figure on the sidelines, with a good chunk of public opinion against him.  A 2-0 friendly loss to Croatia, a 1-1 draw against Lithuania and a comprehensive 3-1 defeat to France in the qualifiers had many calling for Donadoni’s head.  To the coach’s credit, he remained calm and pointed to the late start of the Italian season as a mitigating factor for the dismal results in the fall of 2006. Donadoni has built on much of the great work Lippi had done, but he has also experimented with different formations and players. Under his watch, the speedy Udinese man Antonio Di Natale has been a fairly regular player, while he has recalled Lippi’s hated Roma right-back Christian Panucci. Donadoni may not have the experience of Lippi, nor the charisma, but he has gotten his Italy side to express themselves in the various formations he has tried out.  He has also had to cope with the international retirements of playmaker Francesco Totti and central defender Alessandro Nesta.  Given all these circumstances, Donadoni has done a fantastic job in getting Italy to Euro2008, and the World Champions look a side that can win it all.

How Italy qualified

As group winners.  They lost to France early in the campaign but recovered brilliantly and remained unbeaten for the rest of the qualifiers to qualify with a game to spare.  Italy beat Ukraine and Scotland twice, but they were unable to avenge the loss to the French in the return game at the San Siro. 

How Italy  play

It seems that a 4-3-3 system suits Italy best.  In that formation, Mauro Camaronesi and Antonio Di Natale are the two wide forwards, who support the hulking Luca Toni.  Behind them, Donadoni places the peerless creative playmaker Andrea Pirlo, with two tough tackling midfielders, both of whom he chooses from the trio of Massimo Ambrosini, Daniele De Rossi, and Gennaro Gattuso.  Gianluigi Buffon is the phenomenal goalkeeper behind the defensive quartet of Panucci or Massimo Oddo,  Fabio Cannavaro, Andrea Barzagli, and Gianluca Zambrotta. Italy still play the same aggressive game they did under Lippi.  Gone are the days of over-cautious tactics.  Italy always come to impose themselves on the opposition, as should be the wont of World Champions.

About the coach

Donadoni, a former Milan midfielder, had a fairly successful stint at Livorno before he took the Azzurri job. The 44-year-old has experimented with the Italian line-up, showing his ability to adapt to the situation.

Key players

Fabio Cannavaro- The captain of the side, Cannavaro is now even more important for Italy given the retirement of Nesta. His experience will be indispensable for younger defenders like Barzagli. Strong and, despite being short, brilliant in the air.   Andrea Pirlo- The 28-year-old midfielder spreads the play for Italy with his typical calmness on the ball. Pirlo is the main creative force in the side now that Totti has retired from the international scene. He is exceptional at free-kicks.

Star player

Gianluigi Buffon- The best goalkeeper in the world, Buffon is a man who exudes calmness to the entire team.  A brilliant shot-stopper, who is almost impossible to beat. With Buffon Italy have an edge that only a very few teams in the world can boast.

Verdict

Italy have an abundance of talent going into Euro2008.  It is testament to their large number of options that Donadoni still has to decide whether or not to take the temperamental Sampdoria forward Antonio Cassano to the tournament.  He could probably do just as well without him.  Despite being in a group with France, Netherlands, and Romania, Italy should progress all the way to the Final.

Article by Hasan Saiyid

Italy Euro 2008 News

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