Italy national football team
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 | |||
| Nickname(s) | Gli Azzurri (The Blues) La Squadra Azzurra (The Blue Team) | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Association | Federazione Italiana Giuoco Calcio | ||
| Confederation | UEFA (Europe) | ||
| Head coach | Cesare Prandelli | ||
| Captain | Gianluigi Buffon | ||
| Most caps | Fabio Cannavaro (136) | ||
| Top scorer | Luigi Riva (35) | ||
| FIFA code | ITA | ||
| FIFA ranking | 14 | ||
| Highest FIFA ranking | 1 (November 1993 February 2007 April 2007-June 2007) | ||
| Lowest FIFA ranking | 16 (April 1998 October 2010) | ||
| Elo ranking | 12 | ||
| Highest Elo ranking | 1 (June 1934-March 1940 December 1940-November 1945 July 2006-August 2006) | ||
| Lowest Elo ranking | 21 (November 1959) | ||
| |||
| First international | |||
 Italy 6–2 France  (Milan, Italy; 15 May 1910) | |||
| Biggest win | |||
 Italy 9–0 United States  (Brentford, England; 2 August 1948) | |||
| Biggest defeat | |||
 Hungary 7–1 Italy (Budapest, Hungary; 6 April 1924) | |||
| World Cup | |||
| Appearances | 17 (First in 1934) | ||
| Best result | Winners, 1934, 1938, 1982, 2006 | ||
| European Championship | |||
| Appearances | 7 (First in 1968) | ||
| Best result | Winners, 1968 | ||
| Confederations Cup | |||
| Appearances | 1 (First in 2009) | ||
| Best result | Round 1, 2009 | ||
The traditional colour of the national team (as well as all Italian national teams and athletes officially representing Italy) is azure blue[3] (azzurro, in Italian), due to the "Azzurro Savoia" (Savoy Blue), the colour traditionally linked to the royal dynasty which unified Italy in 1861, and maintained in the official standard of the President of the Italian Republic.
[edit] History
[edit] Origins and first two World Cups (1910–1938)
The team's first match was held in Milan on 15 May 1910, Italy defeated France by a score of 6–2.[4]. Some turmoil kept the players of Pro Vercelli, the best team of the league, out of the game. At the end of the match, the players received as a prize some cigarette packets thrown by the 4,000 spectators.[5] The Italian team (2-3-5): De Simoni; Varisco, Calì; Trerè, Fossati, Capello; Debernardi, Rizzi, Cevenini I, Lana, Boiocchi. First captain of the team was Francesco Calì.[6]The first success in an official tournament came with the bronze medal in 1928 Summer Olympics, held in Amsterdam. After losing the semi-final against Uruguay, an 11-3 victory against Egypt secured last place in the competition.
After declining to participate in the first World Cup (1930, in Uruguay) the Italian national team won two consecutive editions of the tournament in 1934 and 1938, under the lead of coach Vittorio Pozzo and thanks to the genius of Giuseppe Meazza, one of the best Italian players ever. Other stars of that era included Luis Monti, Giovanni Ferrari, Silvio Piola and Virginio Rosetta In the 1934 World Cup, the host Azzurri defeated Czechoslovakia 2–1 in Rome, with goals by Raimundo Orsi and Angelo Schiavio.
[edit] Post-World War II (1946–1966)
The tragic loss in 1949 of the players of Torino (the winners of the previous four Serie A titles) in the Superga air disaster saw the loss of ten out of the eleven constituting the initial line-up for the national team. The following year, Italy did not advance further than the first round of the 1950 World Cup, partly due to the long and physically devastating boat trip to Brazil (air travel was discarded due to fear of another accident).In the World Cup finals of 1954 and the 1962 that followed, Italy again failed to progress past the first round, and did not even qualify for the 1958 World Cup. During the early 1960s, the Italian football clubs AC Milan and Internazionale dominated the international scene, the National team was not able to match these results. Italy did not take part in the first edition of the European Championship in 1960 (then known as the European Nations Cup), and was knocked out by the USSR in the round of 16 (second round) of the 1964 European Championship.
Their participation in the 1966 World Cup is always remembered for their 0–1 defeat at the hands of North Korea. Despite being the tournament favourites, the Azzurri, whose 1966 squad included Rivera and Bulgarelli, were eliminated in the first round by the semi-professional North Koreans and bitterly condemned upon their return home, while North Korean scorer Pak Doo-Ik was celebrated as the David who killed Goliath.[7]
[edit] European champions and World Cup runners-up (1968–1976)
In 1968, the Azzurri won their first major competition since the 1938 World Cup, beating Yugoslavia in Rome for the European Championship title. The match holds the distinction of being the only major football tournament final to go to a replay. After extra time it ended in a 1–1 draw, and in the days before penalty shootouts, the rules required the match to be replayed a few days later. Italy won the replay 2–0 (with goals from Riva and Anastasi) to take the trophy.In 1970, Italian team was one of the favourite teams for the title. Exploiting the performances of European champions player like Giacinto Facchetti, Rivera and Riva and with a new center-forward Roberto Boninsegna, the Azzurri were able to came back to a world cup final match after 32 years of desolation. They reached this result after one of the most famous match in football history: Italy vs. West Germany 4-3, which is known as the "Game of the Century". Although they were defeated by the amazing Brazilians, the 1970's team is still recognized as one of the best Italian national teams. The "Mexican generation" ended its cycle of international successes in the 1974 World cup, being eliminated by Lato's Polish team.
[edit] World Cup winners for the third time (1978–1982)
After a scandal in Serie A where some National Team players such as Paolo Rossi were prosecuted and suspended for match fixing and illegal betting, the Azzurri arrived at the 1982 FIFA World Cup amidst general scepticism and discomfort. Italy qualified for the second round after three uninspiring draws against Poland, Peru and Cameroon. Having been loudly criticized, the Italian team decided on a press black-out from then on, with only coach Enzo Bearzot and captain Dino Zoff appointed to speak to the press.
Italy's strength finally showed in the second round group, a true Group of Death with Argentina and Brazil - the defending champions and the team favoured to dethrone them. In the opener, Italy prevailed 2-1 over Diego Maradona's side after an ill-tempered battle in which Italy's defenders and midfielders proved their mastery in the rougher side of the game. Italy's goals, both excellent left-footed strikes, were scored by Marco Tardelli and Antonio Cabrini. After Brazil defeated Argentina 3-1, Italy needed to win in order to advance to the semifinals. Twice Italy went in the lead with Paolo Rossi goals, and twice Brazil came back. When Paulo Roberto Falcão scored to make it 2–2 Brazil would have been through on goal difference; but in the 74th minute Rossi poked home the winning goal in a crowded penalty area to send Italy to the semifinals after one of the all-time greatest games in World Cup history[8]. In the wake of its brilliant second round performance, Italy easily dispatched Poland in the first semi-final with another two goals from Rossi.
In the final match, Italy met their traditional opponent West Germany, who had advanced thanks to a penalty shootout victory against France. The first half ended scoreless, after Cabrini missed a penalty awarded for a Hans-Peter Briegel foul on Bruno Conti. In the second half Paolo Rossi again scored the first goal, and while the Germans were pushing forward in search of an equaliser, Tardelli and substitute Alessandro Altobelli finalised two perfect contropiede counterattacks to make it 3–0. Paul Breitner smashed home West Germany's consolation goal seven minutes from the end, making him the second man after Pelé to score in two non-consecutives World Cup finals.
Tardelli's scream after his goal in the final is still remembered as the symbol of Italy's 1982 World Cup triumph. Paolo Rossi won the Golden Boot with six goals, and 40-year-old captain-goalkeeper Dino Zoff became the oldest-ever player to win the World Cup.
[edit] World Cup and European Championship runners-up (1984–2004)
For twenty-four years following the 1982 triumph, the Azzurri figured prominently on the world stage but did not win another tournament. Italy failed to qualify for the 1984 European Championship and were knocked out in the Round of 16 of the 1986 World Cup by France. 1988 saw them reach the semifinals of the European Championship, where they were defeated 2–0 by the USSR. It was the same year in which they lost to Zambia in the Olympic games.Italy hosted the World Cup for the second time in 1990. The Italian attack featured talented forwards Salvatore Schillaci and a young Roberto Baggio. Despite being favourites[9] to win and not conceding a goal in their first five matches, Italy lost in the semifinal to defending champion Argentina, losing 4-3 on penalty kicks following a 1–1 draw after extra time, Schillaci's first half opener having been equalised in the second half by Claudio Caniggia's header for Argentina. Aldo Serena missed the final penalty kick (with Roberto Donadoni also having his penalty saved by goalkeeper Sergio Goycochea). Italy went on to defeat England 2–1 in the third place match, with Schillaci scoring the winning goal on a penalty to become the tournament's top scorer with 6 goals. Italy then failed to qualify for the 1992 European Championship.
In the 1994 World Cup, Italy started very slowly but reached the final. They lost the opening match against Ireland 0–1, this being the only match Italy would lose (not counting games lost after shootout) over the span of three World Cup finals from 1990 to 1998 and one only of four games they have lost in regular time since 1988 in either a Euro or World Cup (losing 2–1 to Czech Republic in the first round of Euro 1996 is the second one, losing 2–1 to Croatia in the first round of 2002 world cup is the third one with the 3–0 defeat to the Netherlands in the Euro 2008 opener now the fourth). After a gritty 1–0 win against Norway and a 1–1 draw with Mexico, Italy advanced from Group E based on goals scored among the four teams tied on points. In the Round of 16, Italy was down 0-1 late against Nigeria, but Roberto Baggio came to the rescue with a splended equaliser in the 88th minute and a penalty in extra time to snatch the win.[10] Baggio scored another late goal against Spain in the quarter-final to seal a 2–1 win and two beautifully taken goals against Bulgaria in the semi-final for another 2–1 win.[11][12] In the final, Italy and Brazil played 120 minutes of scoreless football, taking the match to a penalty shootout. Italy lost the subsequent shootout 3–2 after Baggio, who had been playing with the aid of a pain-killing injection and a heavily bandaged hamstring, missed the final penalty kick of the match, shooting over the crossbar.[13]
Italy did not progress beyond the group stage at the finals of Euro 96. Gianfranco Zola failed to convert a decisive penalty against Germany, who eventually won the tournament. Then, during the qualifying campaign for the 1998 FIFA World Cup, the Azzurri beat England at Wembley for the second time with Zola scoring the only goal. In the final tournament, Italy found themselves in another critical shootout for the third World Cup in a row. The Italian side, where Del Piero and Baggio renewed the controversial staffetta (relay) between Mazzola and Rivera from 1970, held the eventual World Champions and host team France to a 0–0 draw after extra time in the quarterfinals, but lost 4–3 in the shootout. With two goals scored in this tournament, Roberto Baggio is still the only Italian player to have scored in three different FIFA World Cup editions.
In the 2002 World Cup, Italy again had a difficult time. A comfortable 2–0 victory against Ecuador with two Christian Vieri goals was followed by a 2–1 defeat to Croatia. A 1–1 draw with Mexico thanks to a goal from Alessandro Del Piero proved enough to advance to the knockout stages. However, co-host country South Korea knocked out Italy in the Round of 16.
A three-way tie in the group stage of the 2004 European Championship left Italy as the "odd man out", and they failed to qualify for the quarterfinals after finishing behind Denmark and Sweden on the basis of number of goals scored in matches among the tied teams.[14] The winning goal scored during stoppage time against Bulgaria by Antonio Cassano resulted useless, leaving the Italian striker in tears at the end of the game.
[edit] World champions for the fourth time (2006 World Cup)
Italy's campaign in the 2006 World Cup hosted by Germany was accompanied by open pessimism[15] due to the controversy caused by the 2006 Serie A scandal. These negative predictions were then refuted, as the Azzurri eventually won their fourth World Cup.Italy won their opening game against Ghana 2-0, with goals from Andrea Pirlo (40') and substitute Vincenzo Iaquinta (83'). The team performance was judged the best among the opening games by FIFA president Sepp Blatter[16].
The second match was a less convincing 1–1 draw with USA, with Alberto Gilardino's diving header equalized by a Cristian Zaccardo own goal. After the equalizer, midfielder Daniele De Rossi and the USA's Pablo Mastroeni and Eddie Pope were sent off, leaving only nine men on the field for nearly the entirety of the second half, but the score remained unchanged despite a controversial decision when Gennaro Gattuso's shot was deflected in but disallowed because of an offside ruling. The same happened at the other end when U.S. winger DaMarcus Beasley's goal was not given due to teammate Brian McBride being ruled offside. De Rossi was suspended for four matches for elbowing McBride in the face and could only return for the final match.
Italy finished first in Group E with a 2–0 win against the Czech Republic, with goals from defender Marco Materazzi (26') and striker Filippo Inzaghi (87'), advancing to the Round of 16 in the knockout stages, where they faced Australia. In this match, Materazzi was controversially sent off early in the second half (53') after an attempted two-footed tackle on Australian midfielder Marco Bresciano. In stoppage time a penalty kick was awarded to the Azzurri when referee Cantalejo ruled that Lucas Neill fouled Fabio Grosso. Francesco Totti converted into an upper corner of the goal past Mark Schwarzer for a 1–0 win.[17]
In the quarterfinals Italy beat Ukraine 3–0. Gianluca Zambrotta opened the scoring early (6') with a left-footed shot from outside the penalty area after a quick exchange with Totti created enough space. Luca Toni added two more goals in the second half (59' and 69'), as Ukraine pressed forward but were not able to score, hitting the crossbar and requiring several saves from Buffon and a goal-line clearance from Zambrotta. Afterwards, manager Marcello Lippi dedicated the victory to former Italian international Gianluca Pessotto, who was in the hospital recovering from an apparent suicide attempt.[18]
In the semi-final, Italy beat host country Germany 2–0 with the two goals coming in the last two minutes of extra time. After an exciting, back-and-forth half hour of extra time during which Gilardino and Zambrotta struck the post and the crossbar respectively, Grosso scored in the 119th minute after a disguised Pirlo pass found him open in the penalty area for a bending left-footed shot into the far corner past German goalkeeper Jens Lehmann's dive. Substitute striker Alessandro Del Piero then sealed the victory by scoring with the last kick of the game at the end of a swift counterattack by Cannavaro, Totti and Gilardino.[19]
Ten different players scored for Italy and five goals out of twelve were scored by substitutes, while four goals were scored by defenders. Seven players — Gianluigi Buffon, Fabio Cannavaro, Gianluca Zambrotta, Andrea Pirlo, Gennaro Gattuso, Francesco Totti and Luca Toni — were named to the 23-man tournament All Star Team.[21] Buffon also won the Lev Yashin Award, given to the best goalkeeper of the tournament; he conceded only two goals in the tournament, the first an own goal by Zaccardo and the second from Zidane's penalty kick in the final, and remained unbeaten for 460 consecutive minutes.[22] In honour of Italy winning the FIFA World Cup for a fourth time, all of the World Cup Squad were awarded the Italian Order of Merit of Cavaliere Ufficiale.[23][24]
[edit] After the World Cup (2006–2010)
After the Italian triumph in the World Cup, Lippi announced his resignation.[25] 1994 World Cup star Roberto Donadoni was announced the new coach of the Azzurri on 13 July. Italy played in the 2008 UEFA European Football Championship qualifying Group B, along with France. Italy won the group, with France being the runner-up.[26] On 14 February 2007, FIFA ranked Italy 1st in the FIFA World Rankings, with a total of 1488 points, 37 points ahead of second ranked Argentina. This moved them up one from their previous rank, 2nd. The Azzurri had not received such an honour since 1993.[27]In Euro 2008, the Azzurri got off to a poor start, losing 0–3 to the Netherlands. The following game against Romania ended with 1–1, with a goal by Christian Panucci that came only a minute after Romania's Adrian Mutu capitalized on a mistake by Gianluca Zambrotta to give Romania the lead. The result was preserved by Gianluigi Buffon who saved a penalty kick from Mutu in the 80th minute.
The final game against France, a rematch of the 2006 World Cup Final, was won with a 2–0 victory. Andrea Pirlo scored from the penalty spot and a free kick by Daniele De Rossi took a wild deflection resulting Italy's second goal. Romania, entering the day a point ahead of the Italians in Group C, lost to the Netherlands 2–0, allowing Italy to pass into the quarterfinals against eventual champion Spain, where they lost 2–4 on penalties. Within a week after the game, Roberto Donadoni's contract was terminated and Marcello Lippi was rehired as coach.[28]
By virtue of winning the World Cup, Italy qualified for the Confederations Cup, held in South Africa in June 2009. They won their opening match, against United States, 3–1, but defeats to Egypt (0–1) and Brazil (0–3) meant that they finished third in the group on goals scored, and were eliminated. In October 2009, Italy qualified for the 2010 World Cup South Africa after drawing with Republic of Ireland 2-2. On 4th December 2009, the draw for the World Cup was made, Italy was in Group F alongside Paraguay, New Zealand and Slovakia.
At the 2010 World Cup in South Africa, Italy were eliminated in the first round, finishing last place in their group. After being held to 1-1 draws by Paraguay and football minnows New Zealand, they lost 3-2 to Slovakia.The results from the group stage sent shock waves across the world. It was the first time Italy failed to win a single game at World Cup finals, and in doing so became the first nation to be eliminated in the first round while holding the World Cup crown twice. [29]
[edit] Cesare Prandelli Era
Marcello Lippi stepped down after Italy's World Cup campaign and was replaced by Cesare Prandelli, although Lippi's successor had already been announced before the tournament. Italy began their campaign with Prandelli with a disappointing 0-1 loss to Côte d'Ivoire in a friendly match. Then, during the 2012 Euro Qualifier, Italy came back from behind to defeat Estonia 2-1. In the next UEFA Qualifier, Italy dominated the Faroe Islands 5-0. Italy then tied 0-0 with Northern Ireland. Five days later, Italy played Serbia. However, Serbian fans in Stadio Luigi Ferraris, began to riot, throwing flares, and shooting fireworks onto the pitch, subsequently, ending the game. Upon UEFA Disciplinary Review, Italy was awarded a 3-0 Victory. Puting them in sole possession of their group.[edit] Competitive record
[edit] World Cup record
| [edit] European Championship record
|
- *Draws include knockout matches decided by penalty shootout.
- **Gold background color indicates that the tournament was won. Red border color indicates tournament was held on home soil.
[edit] Confederations Cup record
| FIFA Confederations Cup | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Results | GP | W | D | L | GS | GA | |
 1997 | Did not qualify | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
 1999 | Did not qualify | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
  2001 | Did not qualify | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 2003 | Did not qualify | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
 2005 | Did not qualify | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
 2009 | Round 1 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 5 | |
| Total | 1/6 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 5 | |
[edit] Honours
- This is a list of honours for the senior Italian national team
-
- Winner (2): 1927-30, 1933-35
- Runner-up (1): 1931-32
[edit] Coaches
During the earliest days of Italian nation football, it was common for a Technical Commission to be appointed. The Commission took the role that a standard coach would currently play. Ever since 1967, the national team has been controlled by the coaches only.For this reason, the coach of the Italian national team is still called Technical Commissioner (Commissario tecnico or CT).
- Technical Commission (1910–1912)
- Vittorio Pozzo (1912)
- Technical Commission (1912–1924)
- Vittorio Pozzo (1924)
- Technical Commission (1924–1925)
- Augusto Rangone (1925–1928)
- Carlo Carcano (1928–1929)
- Vittorio Pozzo (1929–1948) — World Champions 1934, World Champions 1938
- Ferruccio Novo (1949–1950) — as Technical Commission Chairman
- Technical Commission (1951)
- Carlino Beretta (1952–1953)
- Technical Commission (1953–1959)
- Giuseppe Viani (1960)
- Giovanni Ferrari (1960–1961)
- Giovanni Ferrari and Paolo Mazza (1962)
- Edmondo Fabbri (1962–1966)
- Ferruccio Valcareggi and Helenio Herrera (1966–1967)
- Ferruccio Valcareggi (1967–1974) — European Champions 1968, Runners-Up World Cup 1970
- Fulvio Bernardini (1974–1975)
- Enzo Bearzot (1975–1986) — World Champions 1982— 4th Place World Cup 1978
- Azeglio Vicini (1986–1991) — 3rd Place World Cup 1990
- Arrigo Sacchi (1991–1996) — Runners-Up World Cup 1994
- Cesare Maldini (1997–1998)
- Dino Zoff (1998–2000) — Runners-Up European Championships 2000
- Giovanni Trapattoni (2000–2004)
- Marcello Lippi (2004–2006) — World Champions 2006
- Roberto Donadoni (2006–2008)
- Marcello Lippi (2008–2010)
- Cesare Prandelli (2010–present)
[edit] Recent results and forthcoming fixtures
[edit] UEFA Euro 2012 qualifying
Main article: UEFA Euro 2012 qualifying Group C
|
[edit] Players
[edit] Current squad
Players called up for friendly match against Romania on 17 November 2010.Caps and goals as of 17 November 2010.
| # | Name | Date of birth (Age) | Club | Caps (Goals) | Debut |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Goalkeepers | |||||
| 1 | Emiliano Viviano | 1 December 1985 | Bologna | 4 (0) | v. Faroe Islands, 7 September 2010 |
| 12 | Salvatore Sirigu | 12 January 1987 | Palermo | 2 (0) | v. Côte d'Ivoire, 10 August 2010 |
| 15 | Antonio Mirante | 8 July 1983 | Parma | 0 (0) | N/A |
| Defenders | |||||
| 2 | Davide Santon | 2 January 1991 | Internazionale | 6 (0) | v. Northern Ireland, 6 June 2009 |
| 3 | Domenico Criscito | 30 December 1986 | Genoa | 12 (0) | v. Switzerland, 12 August 2009 |
| 7 | Federico Balzaretti | 6 December 1981 | Palermo | 1 (0) | v. Romania, 17 November 2010 |
| 13 | Daniele Gastaldello | 25 June 1983 | Sampdoria | 0 (0) | N/A |
| 16 | Mattia Cassani | 26 August 1983 | Palermo | 6 (0) | v. Sweden, 18 November 2009 |
| 17 | Andrea Ranocchia | 16 February 1988 | Genoa | 1 (0) | v. Romania, 17 November 2010 |
| 19 | Leonardo Bonucci | 1 May 1987 | Juventus | 8 (2) | v. Cameroon, 3 March 2010 |
| 20 | Davide Astori | 7 January 1987 | Cagliari | 0 (0) | N/A |
| Midfielders | |||||
| 4 | Cristian Ledesma | 24 September 1982 | Lazio | 1 (0) | v. Romania, 17 November 2010 |
| 5 | Daniele De Rossi | 24 July 1983 | Roma | 62 (10) | v. Norway, 4 September 2004 |
| 6 | Stefano Mauri | 20 June 1980 | Lazio | 9 (0) | v. Finland, 17 November 2004 |
| 8 | Alessandro Diamanti | 2 May 1983 | Brescia | 1 (0) | v. Romania, 17 November 2010 |
| 14 | Alberto Aquilani | 7 July 1984 | Juventus | 12 (2) | v. Turkey, 15 November 2006 |
| 21 | Andrea Pirlo | 19 May 1979 | Milan | 72 (9) | v. Azerbaijan, 7 September 2002 |
| Strikers | |||||
| 9 | Giampaolo Pazzini | 2 August 1984 | Sampdoria | 14 (1) | v. Montenegro, 28 March 2009 |
| 10 | Mario Balotelli | 12 August 1990 |  Manchester City | 2 (0) | v. Côte d'Ivoire, 10 August 2010 |
| 11 | Alberto Gilardino | 5 July 1982 | Fiorentina | 45 (17) | v. Norway, 4 September 2004 |
| 18 | Fabio Quagliarella | 31 January 1983 | Juventus | 25 (6) | v. Scotland, 29 March 2007 |
| 22 | Giuseppe Rossi (c) | 1 February 1987 |  Villarreal | 18 (3) | v. Bulgaria, 11 October 2008 |
[edit] Recent call-ups
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[edit] Previous squads
[edit] Most capped players
As of 17 November 2010, the players with the most caps for Italy are:| # | Name | Career | Caps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Fabio Cannavaro | 1997–2010 | 136 | 2 |
| 2 | Paolo Maldini | 1988–2002 | 126 | 7 |
| 3 | Dino Zoff | 1968–1983 | 112 | 0 |
| 4 | Gianluigi Buffon | 1997– | 102 | 0 |
| 5 | Gianluca Zambrotta | 1999– | 98 | 2 |
| 6 | Giacinto Facchetti | 1963–1977 | 94 | 3 |
| 7 | Alessandro Del Piero | 1995–2008 | 91 | 27 |
| 8 | Franco Baresi | 1982–1994 | 81 | 1 |
| Giuseppe Bergomi | 1982–1998 | 81 | 6 | |
| Marco Tardelli | 1976–1985 | 81 | 6 |
[edit] Top goalscorers
As of 17 November 2010, the players with the most goals for Italy are:| # | Name | Career | Goals | Caps | Goals per match |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Luigi Riva | 1965–1974 | 35 | 42 | 0.83 |
| 2 | Giuseppe Meazza | 1930–1939 | 33 | 53 | 0.62 |
| 3 | Silvio Piola | 1935–1952 | 30 | 34 | 0.88 |
| 4 | Roberto Baggio | 1988–2004 | 27 | 56 | 0.48 |
| Alessandro Del Piero | 1995–2008 | 27 | 91 | 0.29 | |
| 6 | Adolfo Baloncieri | 1920–1930 | 25 | 47 | 0.53 |
| Filippo Inzaghi | 1997–2007 | 25 | 57 | 0.44 | |
| Alessandro Altobelli | 1980–1988 | 25 | 61 | 0.41 | |
| 9 | Christian Vieri | 1997–2005 | 23 | 49 | 0.47 |
| Francesco Graziani | 1975–1983 | 23 | 64 | 0.36 |
[edit] See also
- Coverciano
- Football in Italy
- Italy national under-21 football team
- Italy national under-20 football team
- Italy national under-19 football team
- Italy national under-17 football team
- Game of the Century
- Battle of Highbury
- Battle of Santiago
[edit] Notes
- ^ a b restricted to amateur players
- ^ Squad limited to three players over 23 years of age: these games are not normally considered to be part of the record of the national team
- ^ Azure blue was the colour of the royal house of the Kingdom of Italy. In its first two matches, the Italian national team wore white shirts with shorts from the club of each player; the azure shirts were introduced in the third match.
- ^ FIGC
- ^ FIGC - Club Italia
- ^ http://download.repubblica.it/pdf/motori/supplemento_ottobre06/04.pdf
- ^ http://fifaworldcup.yahoo.com/06/en/p/cg/por_prk_1966.html
- ^ http://www.fifa.com/classicfootball/matches/match=923/index.html#italians+triumph+heavyweight+rumble
- ^ Yahoo! Sports - Sports News, Scores, Rumors, Fantasy Games, and more
- ^ "Match Report - 1994 FIFA World Cup USA (TM): Nigeria - Italy". FIFAworldcup.com. http://fifaworldcup.yahoo.com/06/en/w/pwc/mr_3091.html. Retrieved 2006-07-25.
- ^ "Match Report - 1994 FIFA World Cup USA (TM): Italy - Spain". FIFAworldcup.com. http://fifaworldcup.yahoo.com/06/en/w/pwc/mr_3097.html. Retrieved 2006-07-25.
- ^ "Match Report - 1994 FIFA World Cup USA (TM): Bulgaria - Italy KIR". FIFAworldcup.com. http://fifaworldcup.yahoo.com/06/en/w/pwc/mr_3100.html. Retrieved 2006-07-25.
- ^ "USA 1994". FIFAworldcup.com. http://fifaworldcup.yahoo.com/06/en/p/pwc/1994.html. Retrieved 2006-07-25.
- ^ There was some controversy as both Sweden and Denmark knew before their final match that a 2-2 draw between them would let both Scandinavian sides qualify at the Italians' expense, and that is exactly what transpired. Totti again found himself at the center of controversy for the Italian side after being suspended for three games for a spitting incident in the match against Denmark.
- ^ People's Daily Online - Scandal threatening to bury Italy's Cup dream
- ^ Dampf, Andrew (2006-06-12). "Pirlo Leads Italy Past Ghana at World Cup". The Washington Post. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/06/12/AR2006061201171.html. Retrieved 5 May 2010.
- ^ "Italy 1-0 Australia". BBC Sport. 2006-06-26. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/world_cup_2006/4991534.stm. Retrieved 2009-08-18.
- ^ "Lippi dedicates win to Pessotto". BBC. 2006-06-30. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/world_cup_2006/teams/italy/5123318.stm. Retrieved 2006-07-25.
- ^ "Germany 0-2 Italy (aet)". BBC Sport. 2006-07-04. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/world_cup_2006/4991640.stm. Retrieved 2009-08-18.
- ^ Stevenson, Jonathan (2006-07-09). "Italy 1-1 France (aet)". BBC Sport. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/world_cup_2006/4991652.stm. Retrieved 2009-08-18.
- ^ "Azzurri prominent in All Star Team". FIFAworldcup.com. 2006-07-07. http://fifaworldcup.yahoo.com/06/en/060707/1/8n9b.html. Retrieved 2006-07-25.
- ^ More than half the team admitted that their hardest game of the campaign was the game against Australia in the round of 16. "Buffon collects Lev Yashin Award". FIFAworldcup.com. 2006-07-10. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/world_cup_2006/teams/italy/5123318.stm. Retrieved 2006-07-25.
- ^ "Italy squad given heroes' welcome". BBC Sport. 2006-07-10. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/world_cup_2006/teams/italy/5164410.stm. Retrieved 2009-08-18.
- ^ "Italian joy at World Cup victory". BBC Sport. 2006-07-10. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/5163914.stm. Retrieved 2009-08-18.
- ^ {{cite Da news |title=Lippi the latest to be sucked into crisis |url=http://football.guardian.co.uk/News_Story/0,,1779716,00.html |first=Kevin |last=Buckley |publisher=Guardian |date=2006-05-21 |accessdate=2006-07-25 | location=London }}
- ^ "Lippi resigns as Italy head coach". BBC. 2006-07-12. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/world_cup_2006/teams/italy/5165406.stm. Retrieved 2006-07-25.
- ^ "Italy oust Brazil to take top spot". FIFA. 2006-02-14. http://www.fifa.com/en/mens/statistics/index/0,2548,131847,00.html?articleid=131847. Retrieved 2006-02-14.[dead link]
- ^ "Euro 2008 - Lippi returns to manage Italy". Eurosport. 2008-06-26. http://eurosport.yahoo.com/26062008/58/euro-2008-lippi-returns-manage-italy.html. Retrieved 2008-06-28.[dead link]
- ^ "Italy out of Africa and Lippi out of excuses". Irish Times. 2010-06-25. http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/sport/2010/0625/1224273272135.html. Retrieved 2010-08-18.
[edit] External links
- Italian Football Federation (Official news about the national team)
- Italy World Cup News
- RSSSF archive of international results 1910—
- RSSSF archive of most capped players and highest goalscorers
- RSSSF archive of coaches 1910—
- Planet World Cup archive of results in the World Cup
- Planet World Cup archive of squads in the World Cup
- Planet World Cup archive of results in the World Cup qualifiers
- Profile of the Italian national team on footballdatabase.com
- Forza Azzurri Statistics — A comprehensive Statistics archive
- Italian Calcio by Steve Amoia. History of the Azzurri and the Serie A. English language site.
- Football Italiano - U.K based site on Italian Football
- Italian Football News
- Italian World Cup 2010 - Meet the Italian World Cup Squad (VIDEO)
[edit] Titles
| Preceded by 1930 Uruguay  | World Champions 1934 (First title) 1938 (Second title) | Succeeded by 1950 Uruguay |
| Preceded by 1978 Argentina  | World Champions 1982 (Third title) | Succeeded by 1986 Argentina  |
| Preceded by 2002 Brazil  | World Champions 2006 (Fourth title) | Succeeded by 2010 Spain |
| Preceded by 1964 Spain  | European Champions 1968 (First title) | Succeeded by 1972 West Germany |
| Awards | ||
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| Preceded by Renault F1 Team | Laureus World Team of the Year 2007 | Succeeded by South African Rugby Union Team |
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