In light of the 37-year-old’s performances for his beloved Roma, should he get a recall to the Azzurri squad for the 2014 World Cup?
Last weekend, on 5 October, Roma faced off against Inter in a highly anticipated clash between two rejuvenated sides eager to be considered among the Scudetto contenders in Serie A this season. Inter, after a high-flying start last season, had imploded midway and had ended up in a disappointing 9th place, while Roma again had missed out on European competition thanks to a 6th place result.
But this season, both teams appeared to have turned their fortunes around, and alongside Juventus and Napoli were the only sides yet to taste defeat. However, given the nature of the clash it was inevitable that someone eventually will drop points as neither side would have been content with a mere draw— in particular hosts Inter, who had already had to share the spoils with Juventus and surprisingly, Cagliari.
As we’re all aware, the match ended as a 3-0 rout in favour of the Giallorossi who had put the game to bed well before half-time and could have added more had they opted not to ease off the gas and conserve their energy. This result is significant as it’s the first time in Roma’s history that they had won seven consecutive games. And the number seven is a magical one in Italian football history, as exactly a lucky septet of teams have won their first seven outings and only one (Inter back in 1966-1967) failed to win the Scudetto come May.
And as for their talismanic captain Francesco Totti, he grabbed two goals and was instrumental in the buildup to the third in a performance that belied his advancing years. Additionally, his three goals and six assists so far in just seven league games, means that he has been involved in nearly 50% of his team’s 20 goals so far—and Roma is currently the top scoring team in Serie A.
Italy’s 2010 campaign was one that many Azzurri supporters would like to forget, as the then-reigning World Cup winners crashed out of the group stage after drawing New Zealand and Paraguay, followed by a shock 3-2 defeat to debutants Slovakia. The team then became the third member of an unfortunate trio of teams who’d failed to progress from the group stages after winning the World Cup four years prior (alongside Brazil in 1966 and France in 2002). Their dismal performance was blamed on the lack of experienced players with many calling for the recall of key veterans such as Alessandro Nesta, Alessandro Del Piero, and Francesco Totti.
Former teammate, close friend, and current Juventus and Azzurri captain Gianluigi Buffon had this to say about il Gladiatore with whom he famously won the World Cup in 2006:
"Francesco is immortal. He is a player who can make a difference at any stage and at any age."
Like a fine wine, Totti only appears to be getting better with the advancing years. At an age that many players are slowing down, he seems to be doing the exact opposite. And while Italy has qualified for next year’s World Cup in Brazil, they at times, haven’t looked exactly convincing in doing so, especially when looking at the current attackers available at their disposal.
Stephan El Shaarawy has been unable to recreate the same blistering form—both through injury and perhaps a lack of confidence—that saw him pull Milan into 7th place going into the Christmas holiday last year. Mario Balotelli, while the Azzurri’s prima punta has a tendency to show as many moments of madness as he does brilliance and hence the team cannot be over-reliant on the enigmatic striker. For, once opponents figure out how to nullify him, the whole team at times seems to lose its teeth in attack.
And as for the others—Fiorentina’s Giuseppe Rossi is only returning from a long injury lay-off and needs time to find his footing; Genoa’s Alberto Gilardino has been largely disappointing; Lorenzo Insigne has looked promising for Napoli but is largely untested at international level; and while Pablo Osvaldo has put in some good performances during the Azzurri’s qualifying matches, who knows what sort of drama he’ll find himself in and be excluded from the team for bad behaviour?
Like the city that he calls home, Totti continues to dazzle year after year without any sign of growing old. Perhaps, then it is time for him to grace the world's biggest stage in less than a year from now if he continues to keep up his fantastic form.
But this season, both teams appeared to have turned their fortunes around, and alongside Juventus and Napoli were the only sides yet to taste defeat. However, given the nature of the clash it was inevitable that someone eventually will drop points as neither side would have been content with a mere draw— in particular hosts Inter, who had already had to share the spoils with Juventus and surprisingly, Cagliari.
As we’re all aware, the match ended as a 3-0 rout in favour of the Giallorossi who had put the game to bed well before half-time and could have added more had they opted not to ease off the gas and conserve their energy. This result is significant as it’s the first time in Roma’s history that they had won seven consecutive games. And the number seven is a magical one in Italian football history, as exactly a lucky septet of teams have won their first seven outings and only one (Inter back in 1966-1967) failed to win the Scudetto come May.
And as for their talismanic captain Francesco Totti, he grabbed two goals and was instrumental in the buildup to the third in a performance that belied his advancing years. Additionally, his three goals and six assists so far in just seven league games, means that he has been involved in nearly 50% of his team’s 20 goals so far—and Roma is currently the top scoring team in Serie A.
Italy’s 2010 campaign was one that many Azzurri supporters would like to forget, as the then-reigning World Cup winners crashed out of the group stage after drawing New Zealand and Paraguay, followed by a shock 3-2 defeat to debutants Slovakia. The team then became the third member of an unfortunate trio of teams who’d failed to progress from the group stages after winning the World Cup four years prior (alongside Brazil in 1966 and France in 2002). Their dismal performance was blamed on the lack of experienced players with many calling for the recall of key veterans such as Alessandro Nesta, Alessandro Del Piero, and Francesco Totti.
Former teammate, close friend, and current Juventus and Azzurri captain Gianluigi Buffon had this to say about il Gladiatore with whom he famously won the World Cup in 2006:
"Francesco is immortal. He is a player who can make a difference at any stage and at any age."
Like a fine wine, Totti only appears to be getting better with the advancing years. At an age that many players are slowing down, he seems to be doing the exact opposite. And while Italy has qualified for next year’s World Cup in Brazil, they at times, haven’t looked exactly convincing in doing so, especially when looking at the current attackers available at their disposal.
Stephan El Shaarawy has been unable to recreate the same blistering form—both through injury and perhaps a lack of confidence—that saw him pull Milan into 7th place going into the Christmas holiday last year. Mario Balotelli, while the Azzurri’s prima punta has a tendency to show as many moments of madness as he does brilliance and hence the team cannot be over-reliant on the enigmatic striker. For, once opponents figure out how to nullify him, the whole team at times seems to lose its teeth in attack.
And as for the others—Fiorentina’s Giuseppe Rossi is only returning from a long injury lay-off and needs time to find his footing; Genoa’s Alberto Gilardino has been largely disappointing; Lorenzo Insigne has looked promising for Napoli but is largely untested at international level; and while Pablo Osvaldo has put in some good performances during the Azzurri’s qualifying matches, who knows what sort of drama he’ll find himself in and be excluded from the team for bad behaviour?
Like the city that he calls home, Totti continues to dazzle year after year without any sign of growing old. Perhaps, then it is time for him to grace the world's biggest stage in less than a year from now if he continues to keep up his fantastic form.
