Advertisement
Phalanx Prophecy: Agendizing Amauri
It's a fierce competition for an attacking role on the Italy squad, but most of the viciousness lies in the media. Next on the agenda to cause pundits to bare their teeth is Amauri's national identity. Zac Lee Rigg explains and previews the Serie A action.
Nov 20, 2009 10:37:03 AM
By Zac Lee Rigg
National identity is a sticky subject.
Without Serie A action over the last two weeks, the Italian press turned once again to the controversial topic of the strikers on the Italian national team. No, I know what you're thinking, and it wasn't that old Antonio Cassano-shaped can of worms again. The ingredients of that particular tin have been skewered and cast into the sea enough times that journalists can't get a bite anymore.
Instead, this time the commotion surrounded Juventus striker Amauri. Brazilian by birth and passport, the former Palermo striker and stunt double for Geico's caveman, Amauri applied for Italian citizenship a few months back. Based on his longevity in the peninsula and obtuse proof of his wife's familial ties to the nation, he could receive a passport in time for the 2010 World Cup.
Italy coach Marcello Lippi apparently favors including Amauri, even at the detriment of promising Italian attackers such as Cassano and Sampdoria teammate Giampaolo Pazzini. By now, both Amauri and Lippi respond bullishly to questions about it from the press, refusing to hypothesize in any detail.
Proponents of the switch have a case. Amauri is the complete modern striker: able to hold up the ball, strong in the air, capable of spearheading an attack even without a partner, and as skillful with the ball at his feet as one would expect of a Brazilian. Finally hitting the back of the net again for Juventus, he provides a more clinical option than his wasteful club teammate Vincenzo Iaquinta. Besides, proponents point out, Italy has already handed Argentine Mauro Camoranesi over half a century of caps. Or what of Simone Perrotta and his English birth, or Giuseppe Rossi, who still calls New Jersey home? Now is no time for self-righteous nationalism.
Opponents of the switch have a case. Until just a year ago, the 29-year-old identified as a Brazilian and hoped for a call-up to the Samba Kings. Besides, doesn't a player switching when he can't get into his own national team cheapen the international game, supposedly the only pure form of the sport left?
From there, arguments tend to take a turn for the repulsively pious and mention something about bloodline.
PP sides with Christian Panucci.
"I don’t know for sure whether Amauri is totally Brazilian or a little Italian," said the man who gathered 57 international caps for Italy in his career, according to Football-Italia.net.
"If the documents say that Amauri can have Italian citizenship, then I think it is right that he is considered for the national side. I see nothing strange about it."
Don't expect such cool heads to prevail in the hysterics surrounding Lippi's choice of strikers to plop on the plane to South Africa, however. This contention will fill newspapers in some form until after Italy returns from Africa at the very least.
Last week: 2/4 (50%)
For the season: 10/16 (62.5%)
Centurion – Udinese @ Juventus
2:30 p.m. EST, Sunday, Nov. 22
Fox Soccer Channel
Perusing through Udinese's conquests this season, Juventus will find the severed heads of AC Milan, Genoa, and Roma. A glance at the teamsheet will unearth Serie A's top scorer, Antonio Di Natale (nine goals). However, if this Juve squad truly harbors hopes of domestic trophies like it claims, two other statistics will matter more. Firstly, Inter already beat Udinese. Secondly, Inter holds a five point lead at the top of the table. By the time this game kicks off on Sunday, Inter very well may have extended that lead to eight points. Anything less than a win at home over a potent Udine side will put Ciro Ferrara and his side under heavy pressure once again.
Key man: Alessandro Del Piero (Juventus) could make his return to the side he captains. Again. A brief substitute appearance is all the 35-year-old has to show from this season so far. If he can get minutes, he can get results.
Prediction: Draw. Despite a solid league position, this Juve side still has problems. A resolute Udinese can frustrate the offense and always has a goal up its sleeve.
Optio – Cagliari @ AC Milan
9:00 a.m. EST, Sunday, Nov. 22
Fox Soccer Channel
Cagliari is on a tear. Four wins on the trot have brought wins over Genoa, Lazio, Atalanta, and Sampdoria. Victories over the Genovese clubs in particular bode well for the plucky Cagliari side. Three points over the rejuvenated Milan would thrust the Isolani into media attention as a possible dark horse. Milan is in fine form itself, having shoved its way into third place in the league. Leonard seems to have figured out his squad's identity and how best to exploit it. This one will be more interesting than most assumed at the beginning of the season.
Key man: Clarance Seedorf (Milan) looks like a new player. Gone is the ineffective mess Milan fans have come to resent over the past few seasons. Back is the slick, sly midfield force the talented Dutchman embodied for a decade prior to his slump. His position as the most advanced midfielder in Leonardo's system makes the rest of the team work.
Prediction: Milan win. This one should be close, but Milan's home advantage will help Leonardo's men edge it.
Decurion – Parma @ Fiorentina
2:30 p.m. EST, Saturday, Nov. 21
Fox Soccer Channel
For the first time in a very long while, Parma fans smile devilishly when glancing at the table. Only a point separates the club from the Champions League places, the last of which is occupied by its host this weekend, Fiorentina. Those same fans may follow up their grins with a greedy twinkle of the eye and licked lips. Not that that will bother the residents of Florence. The club, under the shrewd tutelage of Cesare Prandelli, has held many ambitions clubs at bay over the past handful of seasons, and looks to do so again.
Key Man: Marco Marchionni (Fiorentina) has locked down a hotly-contested starting berth in Prandelli's side. With four goals in the last four games in all competitions, he won't be dislodged easily. Nor will opposition fullbacks relish tracking him.
Prediction: Draw. PP licks its own lips at the thought of two hungry clubs peppering the goals with the famished desire to win, ending up sated equals.
Legionary – Inter @ Bologna
2:30 p.m. EST, Saturday, Nov. 21
Fox Sports en Espanol
Julio Cesar has conceded twice on the road this year. Bologna has scored in its last eight games. As always when two good records square off, one quickly wilts and evaporates from the memory. The last time Bologna triumphed over the Nerezurri came back in 2002. Clarence Seedorf scored the consolation for Inter. Remember back when he suited up in the blue and black of Milan instead of the red and black? Neither will most in this clash.
Key man: Dejan Stankovic (Inter) shoulders all the creative burden when Wesley Sneijder misses out due to injury, which he will against Bologna. How well the Serb performs in the trequartista role that really doesn't flatter his skillset will determine much in this match.
Prediction: Inter win. Nice and rested from the international break, not many teams in Italy would hold much hope of stealing points from the dominant Inter.
Civilians:
Lazio's visit to Napoli could be where coach Davide Ballardini finally loses his job. It could also be where want-away-and-subsequently-exiled Lazio stars Goran Pandev and Cristian Ledesma end up in January, if reports indicate correctly. United States fans now know Marek Hamsik, Napoli's devastating attacking weapon, rather well after the young Slovak scored the game-winning penalty over the U.S.
Francesco Totti is fit again for Roma, looking to reignite his team's attack against Bari and fire his way into Italy's World Cup squad. With most now resigned to Cassano's absence, the 0-0 draw between Italy and the Netherlands instead brought about calls for Totti's inclusion in the South Africa-bound roster.
With one point out of the last three matches, Sampdoria needs to turn things around quickly against Chievo or risk sliding down the table towards where pundits predicted the side to finish before the season began: midtable with the outside possibility of a Europa League slot.
Zac Lee Rigg is an associate editor of Goal.com
Keep up to date with Serie A and Italy news with Goal.com's Italy page
National identity is a sticky subject.
Without Serie A action over the last two weeks, the Italian press turned once again to the controversial topic of the strikers on the Italian national team. No, I know what you're thinking, and it wasn't that old Antonio Cassano-shaped can of worms again. The ingredients of that particular tin have been skewered and cast into the sea enough times that journalists can't get a bite anymore.
Instead, this time the commotion surrounded Juventus striker Amauri. Brazilian by birth and passport, the former Palermo striker and stunt double for Geico's caveman, Amauri applied for Italian citizenship a few months back. Based on his longevity in the peninsula and obtuse proof of his wife's familial ties to the nation, he could receive a passport in time for the 2010 World Cup.
Italy coach Marcello Lippi apparently favors including Amauri, even at the detriment of promising Italian attackers such as Cassano and Sampdoria teammate Giampaolo Pazzini. By now, both Amauri and Lippi respond bullishly to questions about it from the press, refusing to hypothesize in any detail.
Proponents of the switch have a case. Amauri is the complete modern striker: able to hold up the ball, strong in the air, capable of spearheading an attack even without a partner, and as skillful with the ball at his feet as one would expect of a Brazilian. Finally hitting the back of the net again for Juventus, he provides a more clinical option than his wasteful club teammate Vincenzo Iaquinta. Besides, proponents point out, Italy has already handed Argentine Mauro Camoranesi over half a century of caps. Or what of Simone Perrotta and his English birth, or Giuseppe Rossi, who still calls New Jersey home? Now is no time for self-righteous nationalism.
Opponents of the switch have a case. Until just a year ago, the 29-year-old identified as a Brazilian and hoped for a call-up to the Samba Kings. Besides, doesn't a player switching when he can't get into his own national team cheapen the international game, supposedly the only pure form of the sport left?
From there, arguments tend to take a turn for the repulsively pious and mention something about bloodline.
PP sides with Christian Panucci.
"I don’t know for sure whether Amauri is totally Brazilian or a little Italian," said the man who gathered 57 international caps for Italy in his career, according to Football-Italia.net.
"If the documents say that Amauri can have Italian citizenship, then I think it is right that he is considered for the national side. I see nothing strange about it."
Don't expect such cool heads to prevail in the hysterics surrounding Lippi's choice of strikers to plop on the plane to South Africa, however. This contention will fill newspapers in some form until after Italy returns from Africa at the very least.
Last week: 2/4 (50%)
For the season: 10/16 (62.5%)
Centurion – Udinese @ Juventus
2:30 p.m. EST, Sunday, Nov. 22
Fox Soccer Channel
Perusing through Udinese's conquests this season, Juventus will find the severed heads of AC Milan, Genoa, and Roma. A glance at the teamsheet will unearth Serie A's top scorer, Antonio Di Natale (nine goals). However, if this Juve squad truly harbors hopes of domestic trophies like it claims, two other statistics will matter more. Firstly, Inter already beat Udinese. Secondly, Inter holds a five point lead at the top of the table. By the time this game kicks off on Sunday, Inter very well may have extended that lead to eight points. Anything less than a win at home over a potent Udine side will put Ciro Ferrara and his side under heavy pressure once again.
Key man: Alessandro Del Piero (Juventus) could make his return to the side he captains. Again. A brief substitute appearance is all the 35-year-old has to show from this season so far. If he can get minutes, he can get results.
Prediction: Draw. Despite a solid league position, this Juve side still has problems. A resolute Udinese can frustrate the offense and always has a goal up its sleeve.
Optio – Cagliari @ AC Milan
9:00 a.m. EST, Sunday, Nov. 22
Fox Soccer Channel
 |
Key man: Clarance Seedorf (Milan) looks like a new player. Gone is the ineffective mess Milan fans have come to resent over the past few seasons. Back is the slick, sly midfield force the talented Dutchman embodied for a decade prior to his slump. His position as the most advanced midfielder in Leonardo's system makes the rest of the team work.
Prediction: Milan win. This one should be close, but Milan's home advantage will help Leonardo's men edge it.
Decurion – Parma @ Fiorentina
2:30 p.m. EST, Saturday, Nov. 21
Fox Soccer Channel
For the first time in a very long while, Parma fans smile devilishly when glancing at the table. Only a point separates the club from the Champions League places, the last of which is occupied by its host this weekend, Fiorentina. Those same fans may follow up their grins with a greedy twinkle of the eye and licked lips. Not that that will bother the residents of Florence. The club, under the shrewd tutelage of Cesare Prandelli, has held many ambitions clubs at bay over the past handful of seasons, and looks to do so again.
Key Man: Marco Marchionni (Fiorentina) has locked down a hotly-contested starting berth in Prandelli's side. With four goals in the last four games in all competitions, he won't be dislodged easily. Nor will opposition fullbacks relish tracking him.
Prediction: Draw. PP licks its own lips at the thought of two hungry clubs peppering the goals with the famished desire to win, ending up sated equals.
Legionary – Inter @ Bologna
2:30 p.m. EST, Saturday, Nov. 21
Fox Sports en Espanol
Julio Cesar has conceded twice on the road this year. Bologna has scored in its last eight games. As always when two good records square off, one quickly wilts and evaporates from the memory. The last time Bologna triumphed over the Nerezurri came back in 2002. Clarence Seedorf scored the consolation for Inter. Remember back when he suited up in the blue and black of Milan instead of the red and black? Neither will most in this clash.
Key man: Dejan Stankovic (Inter) shoulders all the creative burden when Wesley Sneijder misses out due to injury, which he will against Bologna. How well the Serb performs in the trequartista role that really doesn't flatter his skillset will determine much in this match.
Prediction: Inter win. Nice and rested from the international break, not many teams in Italy would hold much hope of stealing points from the dominant Inter.
Civilians:
Lazio's visit to Napoli could be where coach Davide Ballardini finally loses his job. It could also be where want-away-and-subsequently-exiled Lazio stars Goran Pandev and Cristian Ledesma end up in January, if reports indicate correctly. United States fans now know Marek Hamsik, Napoli's devastating attacking weapon, rather well after the young Slovak scored the game-winning penalty over the U.S.
Francesco Totti is fit again for Roma, looking to reignite his team's attack against Bari and fire his way into Italy's World Cup squad. With most now resigned to Cassano's absence, the 0-0 draw between Italy and the Netherlands instead brought about calls for Totti's inclusion in the South Africa-bound roster.
With one point out of the last three matches, Sampdoria needs to turn things around quickly against Chievo or risk sliding down the table towards where pundits predicted the side to finish before the season began: midtable with the outside possibility of a Europa League slot.
Zac Lee Rigg is an associate editor of Goal.com
Keep up to date with Serie A and Italy news with Goal.com's Italy page
Thank you for your comment!
Please enter your name
Please enter your location
Please share your comment!
Italy
- Totti Agrees With Materazzi In Winter Break Debate
- Report: Lazio Sack Davide Ballardini
- Roman Rule: New Signings Further Extend Inter's Dominance
- Juventus Confirm Fabio Cannavaro Recovery, But Gianluigi Buffon Has Flu
- Report: Milan Won't Pay €40 Million For Edin Dzeko
- Report: Sampdoria's Giampaolo Pazzini In Pole Position For Summer Move To Juventus
- CL Debate: The Tide Has Turned - Inter & Manchester United Are Now Favorites Against Chelsea & Milan
- Serie A Preview: Parma - Inter
- Report: Police Question Jose Mourinho After Foiling Planned Burglary On His Home
- World Cup 2010: Report: Italy Coach Marcello Lippi To Become Juventus President
Advertisement
Most Read
- Arsenal To Hand Cesc Fabregas £30m Deal
- Ivory Coast Fans Angry At Didier Drogba’s Chelsea Brace Against Arsenal
- Premier League Player Ratings: Chelsea 2-0 Arsenal
- Arsenal Comment: Wenger’s Failure To Buy In January Has Cost Arsenal
- Numbers Game: 17 Reasons Manchester United Don't Miss Cristiano Ronaldo
- Euro 2012 Draw: Italy Meet Serbia, Germany-Turkey & Portugal-Denmark
- Report: Capello To Pick Bridge For England's Egypt Friendly
- The Full English: Dropping Out
- Men Of La Mancha: Whistle Blowers
- Arsenal Boss Arsene Wenger Retains Interest In Girondins de Bordeaux Striker Marouane Chamakh
- Chelsea 2-0 Arsenal: Didier Drogba Double Dispatches Demoralised Arsenal
Advertisement
Most Discussed
- Report: Juventus Set Sights On Real Madrid's Gonzalo Higuain
35 - Beckham: I Won’t Celebrate If I Score Against Man Utd30
- Report: Milan Won't Pay €40 Million For Edin Dzeko25
- Euro 2012 Draw: Italy Meet Serbia, Germany-Turkey & Portugal-Denmark23
- Euro 2012 Special: What Italy, England, Spain, France, Germany & Holland’s Teams Will Look Like At Euro 201223
- CL Debate: The Tide Has Turned - Inter & Manchester United Are Now Favorites Against Chelsea & Milan15
Advertisement
Watch
