Italy preview- Euro 2012, Here we come!

After a couple of weekends without Italian football, I have to admit, I am pretty excited!! Even though the media has done its very best to take away from the game and make it seem that Italian football is corrupt and even making the National Coach think of withdrawing from the competition!
 With this latest scandal that has come out, it looks  like the Azzurri will not be at the Euros. A drastic measure that the National Coach has offered, and we all hope doesn't happen. For some players this will be their first major competition at senior level, the likes of Claudio Marchisio, Fabio Borini, Antonio Nocherino and even Mario Balotelli have all been working hard for this chance to shine on the big stage.

Mario Balotelli will get his chance to prove that he is worth waiting for and he really is just misunderstood as he is going to be paired up with Antonio Cassano upfront in tonight's friendly.
 This competition will hopefully erase the memory of South Africa 2010 where they didn't even make it out of their group. Back then the Azzurri boss was Marcelo Lippi and his love affair with Juventus got the better of him, no disrespect intended, he did win the World Cup in 06, the problem was that he tried to win another with the practically with the same group of players. New Coach Cesare Prandelli has breathed a breath of fresh air into the side- so to speak, he has been more flexible and open to change and rather progressive as a lot of young players have been allowed to progress into the senior squad but he is also not afraid to drop certain players in certain games, like he did with " Super" Mario and De Rossi in a friendly game against the US, because they had some disciplinary issues domestically. This not only sends a message to them but also to the media- no one is bigger that the team, and it is this kind of strength and group cohesion that could help the Azzurri get rid of the myth that the Italian game is " boring" and "defensive". During their qualifying ( which they finished undefeated and on top!) game Italy would often dictate the games with the new found confidence and their faster more energetic rhythm of play and least we forget, their possession stats were 2nd only to Spain, that should give you an indication that times are changing... and things might be looking up for our boys in blue!

FORZA AZZURRI!!