Italy has qualified!!

A diving header from Palermo defender Cristian Zaccardo saw off Slovenia and booked Italy's ticket for the 2006 World Cup.

http://www.channel4.com/sport/football_ita...es/ita-slo.html

Zaccardo goal
http://2006.abu-jassim.com/ITA_1-0_SLO.wmv

gilardinho disallowed goal
http://2006.abu-jassim.com/Gel.wmv

totti disallowed goal
http://2006.abu-jassim.com/totti.wmv

killerazi should be banned from playing football..

U-21: Palladino sinks Moldova
Tuesday 11 October, 2005

A late goal from Raffaele Palladino concluded Italy's European Under-21 Championship qualifying campaign with a win over Moldova.

The Azzurrini were already assured top spot in Group Five and a place in the play-off to enter the Finals, so they fielded an experimental side in this last qualifier.

The deadlock was eventually broken in the final minutes, as Graziano Pelle' shrugged off three challenges and placed a perfect angled pass for Palladino to spring the offside trap and nutmeg the goalkeeper.

It was a splendid goal for the Livorno striker, although much of the credit must go to Lecce man Pelle'. Italy end their qualifying campaign with eight wins, a draw and a defeat on their way to defend the European Championship title.

source: channel4.com

Forza Palladino!!

goals:

http://www.abu-alwaleed.com/worldcup2006qu...ITA_1-0_MDA.wmv
http://www.abu-alwaleed.com/worldcup2006qu...ITA_2-1_MDA.wmv

announce your allegiance!!

sure.. fell free to use it..

i got alot more.. http://forum.lowyat.net/index.php?showtopic=223666

I hope Inter beat Milan. I expect a win from Juve. Playing Cagliari at home won't be that hard grabbing 3 points.

I hate to say it but Forza Inter

Italy handed Euro 2008 blow
Thursday 8 December, 2005

Italy may be among the top seeds for the World Cup, but they have been placed in the second tier by UEFA for the Euro 2008 qualifying draw.

UEFA confirmed the seedings in Nyon on Thursday which means the Azzurri could come up against the likes of England or France in their group.

Reigning champions Greece are top seeds, despite failing to reach Germany 2006, for the draw which takes place in Montreux, Switzerland on January 27.

Fifty teams will be split into six groups of seven and one of eight, with the winners and runners-up directly progressing to the Finals.

Austria and Switzerland have obviously already booked their places in the event as joint host nations.

Pot 1
Greece
Netherlands
Portugal
England
Czech Republic
France
Sweden

Pot 2
Germany
Croatia
Italy
Turkey
Poland
Spain
Romania

Pot 3
Serbia and Montenegro
Russia
Denmark
Norway
Bulgaria
Ukraine
Slovakia

Pot 4
Bosnia-Herzegovina
Republic of Ireland
Belgium
Latvia
Israel
Scotland
Slovenia

Pot 5
Hungary
Finland
Estonia
Wales
Lithuania
Albania
Iceland

Pot 6
Georgia
F.Y.R. Macedonia
Belarus
Armenia
Northern Ireland
Cyprus
Moldova

Pot 7
Liechtenstein
Azerbaijan
Andorra
Malta
Faroe Islands
Kazakhstan
Luxembourg
San Marino

Source: Football Italia

World Cup draw has been made - and here it is:

A
Germany, Ecuador, Poland, Costa Rica

B
England, Paraguay, Sweden, Trinidad & Tobago

C
Argentina, Holland, Serbia & Montenegro, Ivory Coast

D
Mexico, Angola, Portugal, Iran

E
Italy, Ghana, Czech Republic, USA

F
Brazil, Australia, Croatia, Japan

G
France, Togo, Switzerland, South Korea

H
Spain, Tunisia, Ukraine, Saudi Arabia

----------------
A difficult group for Italy. The Czech and USA are both good teams and Ghana mustn't be underestimated.

http://www.channel4.com/sport/football_italia/dec9j.html

Azzurri pick Nedved
Friday 9 December, 2005

Pavel Nedved's Czech Republic, Sami Kuffour's Ghana and the USA face Italy in Group E of the World Cup Finals.

The opening match for Marcello Lippi's men will be in Hanover against African giants Ghana on June 12, who can count on familiar Serie A faces Sami Kuffour and Stephen Appiah.

Juventus hero Nedved has come out of international retirement for this competition and will take on Italy in Hamburg on June 22.

The Azzurri also face the USA in Kaiserslautern on June 17. The Americans are in their fifth consecutive Finals.

Many believe the Czech Republic played the best football in Euro 2004, where they were eliminated in the semi-finals by eventual winners Greece. Juve's 2003 Ballon d'Or winner Nedved is the key man, but they can also boast the talents of Bianconeri transfer target Tomas Rosicky and giant Jan Koller.

Ghana reach the World Cup Finals for the first time after an excellent qualifying campaign in which the Black Stars conceded just four goals in 12 games, including home and away wins over South Africa. Top star is Chelsea's record-breaking signing Michael Essien, while Sulley Ali Muntari goes from strength to strength at Udinese and Samuel Kuffour is now plying his trade at Roma. Former Juventus midfielder Stephen Appiah completes a strong midfield.

The USA could count on the brightest young prodigy in world football, as teenage sensation Freddy Adu is considered for selection by Coach Bruno Arena. They finished ahead of seeds Mexico in the regional round-robin matches during qualifying and are not to be underestimated, especially as they nearly took Italy's place in the seeding for the World Cup draw. The Azzurri have beaten the USA six times and drawn twice, never falling to a defeat.

Source: Football Italia

World Cup Group E Analysis: Italia 90 Deja-Vu
12/10/2005 12:26:00 AM
Three of the Group E teams were already part of the same group in the 1990 edition.

Group E

ITALY

FIFA Ranking: 12th

World Cup Participations: 15

Best Position In World Cup: Champions, 1934, 1938, 1982.

How They Qualified: First in their qualifying group, that featured Norway, Slovenia, and Scotland as the Azzurri's most difficult contenders.

Players To Watch: The Azzurri have a series of formidable players on their team including Juventus keeper Gianluigi Buffon, and Milan stars Alessandro Nesta and Andrea Pirlo. However it is the Azzurri offense, with Roma's Francesco Totti as playmaker and Fiorentina's Luca Toni as finisher, that will hold Italy's future in its hands.

World Cup Aim: A quarterfinal presence is a must, a semifinal presence a good result, a World Cup final an outstanding campaign, a World Cup triumph an achievable dream.

Ghana

FIFA Ranking: 50th

World Cup Participations: None

Best Position In World Cup: None

How They Qualified: Dominated their African WCQ Group with 21 points in ten matches.

Players To Watch: The midfield is surely Ghana's greatest asset with a strong a technically gifted trio comoposed by Chelsea's Michael Essien, Udinese's Sulley Muntari, and Fenerbahce's Stephan Appiah.

World Cup Aim: A qualification to the knock-out round can already be considered as a great result for the Black Eagles.

Czech Republic

FIFA Ranking: 2nd

World Cup Participations: 8 (all as Czechoslovakia)

Best Position In World Cup: 2nd place in 1934, 1962

How They Qualified: Won their play-off against Norway, aftering coming in 2nd in their group behind the Netherlands

Players To Watch: A very good team, especially of Juventus Pavel Nedved, who is still unsure whether he will go to Germany, will take part in his first World Cup adventure. Other notable players for the Czechs are Villa's Milan Baros and Borussia Dortmund's Tomas Rosiky.

World Cup Aim: Quarterfinals are maybe the best Karl Bruckner's team can do.

United States of America

FIFA Ranking: 7th

World Cup Participations: 8 (all as Czechoslovakia)

Best Position In World Cup: Semifinals in 1930 edition.

How They Qualified: Tied for 1st in CONCACAF Hexagonal.

Players To Watch: PSV's Da Markus Beasley and MLS 2005 Champ Landon Donovan can give any defense a hard time.

World Cup Aim: Who knows what Bruce Arena's side can invent this time after reaching the quarterfinals in the previous tournament. A repeat would surely be a great result.

Points of Interest: Italy, the Czech Republic, and the United States were already placed in the same group at the Italian 1990 World Cup, with the Czechs, then Czechoslovakia, and the Italians making it to the next round. 4 Times African Cup winners Ghana have never been to the World Cup.

Flash Prediction:

1. Italy
2. Czech Republic
3. USA
4. Ghana

Source: Goal.com

Result: Week 15 - 11/12/05

Ascoli - Reggina 1-1
Fiorentina - Treviso 1-0
Inter - Milan 3-2
Juventus - Cagliari 4-0
Livorno - Lazio 2-1
Messina - Chievo 2-0
Parma - Sampdoria 1-1
Roma - Palermo 1-2
Siena - Empoli 1-0
Udinese - Lecce 1-2

AC usually gets hot after winter break.. I'm looking for Lazio - Juve game

Result: Week 16 - 18/12/05

Cagliari - Ascoli 2-1
Chievo - Udinese 2-0
Empoli - Fiorentina 1-1
Lazio - Juventus 1-1
Milan - Messina 4-0
Palermo - Livorno 0-2
Reggina - Inter 0-4
Sampdoria - Roma 1-1
Siena - Parma 2-2
Treviso - Lecce 2-1

Result: Week 17 - 21/12/05
Ascoli - Treviso 1-0
Fiorentina - Palermo 1-0
Inter - Empoli 4-1
Juventus - Siena 2-0
Lecce - Lazio 0-0
Livorno - Milan 0-3
Messina - Reggina 1-1
Parma - Cagliari 1-0
Roma - Chievo 4-0
Udinese - Sampdoria 2-0

Standing:

Club P Pts
Juventus 17 46
Inter 17 38
Milan 17 37
Fiorentina 17 36
Livorno 17 31
Chievo 17 27
Sampdoria 17 25
Roma 17 24
Lazio 17 24
Udinese 17 23
Palermo 17 22
Siena 17 19
Empoli 17 18
Reggina 17 18
Ascoli 17 17
Parma 17 14
Messina 17 13
Cagliari 17 12
Lecce 17 12
Treviso 17 11

TV rights controversy
Wednesday 28 December, 2005

After Juventus' £150m deal with Mediaset, the smaller clubs in Serie A are to meet with Italian Football Federation President Franco Carraro to discuss fears of an increasing class divide.

The fear is that the gap between the rich and the poor in Serie A can only increase without a collective television contract.

Palermo President Maurizio Zamparini and Fiorentina President Diego Della Valle have been the most vocal in expressing their frustration.

"Myself, Della Valle and others won't be able to buy in January because we don't know the budget for next year until we have a TV contract," stated Zamparini

Livorno President Aldo Spinelli, although taking a more conciliatory tone, also stressed the need for a clear agreement to be drawn up.

"Juventus administrator Antonio Giraudo has done his job well but there has to be money for everyone, it has to be a collective deal," said the outspoken Amaranto chief.

Currently Juventus, Inter and Milan stand to make vastly more from TV rights than Fiorentina and Livorno. Last season the two Milan clubs made over six times more than their less illustrious competitors.

- Football Italia

Giants in Marchionni chase
Thursday 29 December, 2005

Juventus, Inter and Fiorentina are set to go head to head in the transfer market for Parma winger Marco Marchionni and Ternana's Luis Jimenez.

The wide midfielder's contract expires at the end of this season and the free agent will be a tempting prospect for any of the big clubs.

Although he was out of action for almost seven months with a knee ligament injury, the 25-year-old has been one of the Gialloblu's best players so far this term.

However, he has repeatedly hinted that a renewal is not on the cards, so he can begin official negotiations with interested parties in January.

Inter and Juventus are the main contenders for Marchionni's signature, though there is an intriguing proposition from Fiorentina.

Marchionni would be able to reunite with his former Parma boss Cesare Prandelli at the Stadio Artemio Franchi and it's well know the Viola are looking for a wide midfielder during the transfer window.

He is an Italian international with two caps under his belt, having made his debut during the 3-1 defeat in Poland on November 12, 2003. Marchionni first achieved notoriety with Empoli before joining Parma in 2001.

Meanwhile, Fiorentina seem to have wrapped up the capture of Ternana's 21-year-old Chilean creative midfielder Luis Antonio Garces Jimenez - a former target for Juve, Inter, Roma and Lazio.

"There is a difference of £345,000 between offer and demand," explained agent Rocco Dozzini on Lady Radio this afternoon. "The two parties have come closer together over the past few days, but there are a few details to work out before we can make the move official. Jimenez would consider Fiorentina to be a very important career step."

- Football Italia

Lazio buy out Behrami
Thursday 29 December, 2005

Valon Behrami has been one of the revelations of this season and Lazio have bought out the remaining 50 per cent of his contract from Genoa.

"We have reached an agreement," revealed Genoa director of sport Mariano Fabiani. "There is nothing official as yet, but a handshake deal is worth more than a written contract in our eyes. We can consider ourselves satisfied with the terms."

Swiss international midfielder Behrami had joined Lazio in the summer in a co-ownership deal, but it's believed the club will buy out the remaining half of his contract for £2.4m plus youth team player Ciani.

"We must wait to ratify the agreement, but most of the work is done. This is down to Lazio President Claudio Lotito's tenacity and Behrami's desire to stay in the capital."

Behrami, who will take part in the 2006 World Cup with Switzerland, arrived in Italy with Genoa in 2003-04 before spending last season at Verona.

Reports suggest that Genoa had been interested in bringing in Simone Inzaghi and Christian Manfredini, who are both on the fringes of the Biancocelesti squad.

"We had also discussed other players as part of this exchange, but the agents did not want to take the matter further," he told Radioincontro.

In other transfer news, Bologna have reportedly reached an agreement to take Lamberto Zauli on loan from Sampdoria for the rest of the season. The 34-year-old creative midfielder left Palermo on a free transfer in the summer, but has struggled to make an impact at Marassi.

- Football Italia