by arseman » Tue Jun 17, 2008 8:25 pm
by Andreys_Does_Simples » Tue Jun 17, 2008 8:32 pm
by SE13 » Tue Jun 17, 2008 8:36 pm
by arseman » Tue Jun 17, 2008 8:42 pm
by Andreys_Does_Simples » Tue Jun 17, 2008 8:45 pm
by corkeosaurus » Tue Jun 17, 2008 9:09 pm
arseman wrote:There it is, Italy thru, France out. On the plus side, it surely has to be taxi for Domenech.
Now let's hope Arsene goes ahead and seals the Nasri deal.
by Inchpräctice » Tue Jun 17, 2008 9:16 pm
by Gunflash » Wed Jun 18, 2008 12:01 am
by arseman » Wed Jun 18, 2008 4:45 am
"A la maison," taunted the tifosi for much of the second half. "To the dole queue," would have been just as apt. Because, surely, Raymond Domenech must go. Gutless and clueless, this was a shameful French surrender. Their non-performance in this tournament has been even less excusable than their fiasco at the 2002 World Cup.
From the outset it was obvious that the manager's intention was to sneak a cagey win. Even Romania had opened up against the Italians, recognising that the Azzurri's offensive ambition meant attacking them is the best form of defence.
France, by contrast, effectively played with six at the back even when they were, in theory, attacking. Claude Makelele and Jeremy Toulalan were basically serving as auxillary centrebacks while Patrice Evra and Francois Clerc were visibly neutered, routinely declining to venture forward, no doubt under instructions. Amazingly, Domenech couldn't bring himself to change this even after France fell behind. Instead he dragged off poor Samir Nasri so that Jean-Alain Boumsong could lumber on and France could continue to stack sandbags around their box. That left him with just one substitution. If Domenech can't summon ambition even in these circumstances, there really is no hope for him.
What made the manager's cowardice even worse, of course, was that despite all the men France kept back Italy found space at will. Giorgio Chiellini, just like Dirk Kuyt the other night, was presented with a free header from a corner in the ninth minute and was thwarted only by a smart save by Gregory Coupet. The running of Simone Perrotta and Daniele de Rossi was canny and cutting. Luca Toni, by contrast, had to do very little to escape the attention of William Gallas. Fortunately for the French, Toni's finishing continues to be wonky - he really should be out of sight at the top of the tournament goalscoring charts by now (in fact, it could be argued that Eric Abidal didn't deserve to be sent off because, given Toni's form, the clumsy defender didn't really deny a clear scoring opportunity).
Another damning French failing that became flagrant after Andrea Pirlo's emphatic spot-kick was their lack of leadership on the pitch. After the goal Les Bleus trudged silently back to the halfway line with their heads down, as if they were on the way to their own funeral. Where were the never-say-die heroes to rally the troops? Or rather, to rouse this rabble.
Even the news of Holland's first goal in Berne, ecstatically relayed by the Italian fans, didn't shake the French out of their stupor. Thierry Henry and Benzema showed determination, but with Franck Ribery and Nasri off the pitch and the central midfielders still paralysed by negative thoughts, the forwards too frequently had to forage for chances alone. And when, in the 74th minute, Benzema did finally manage to work a fine, curling shot on target, Gianluigi Buffon made a wonderful fingertip save.
Just as France deserved to go home, Italy merit their place in the quarter-finals. They began daringly tonight, players hurtling forward from all areas to join Toni, Perrotta and Antonio Cassano, who remained permanently stationed up front. The goal was a just reward for their adventure, vim and movement. And they relented only slightly in the second half. Their second goal may have benefited from a fortunate deflection, but it was quite poetic that it came off Henry: a French attacker putting the ball in the net at the wrong end.
Domenech reacted to being pushed to the brink of elimination by using his last substitution to throw on Nicolas Anelka ... for a forward. Absurd. France disintegration merely intensified and the Italian players, like their fans, took the piss. French favourite Marco Materazzi took, for example, immense pleasure in conveying news of Holland's second goal against Romania and, despite the fact that France were in possession at the time, Buffon did a little jump of joy.
The only things for Italy to regret are the loss through suspension of Pirlo and Gennaro Gattuso for the Spain game. And the lack of a reliable finisher.
by arseman » Wed Jun 18, 2008 8:20 am
by Cheese » Wed Jun 18, 2008 8:28 am
by Yorkyblue » Wed Jun 18, 2008 9:01 am
by gzagee » Wed Jun 18, 2008 11:41 am
by StLGooner » Wed Jun 18, 2008 12:37 pm