Source: http://www.goal.com/en/articolo.aspx?contenutoid=721634

Calcio Debate: How Will Italy Cope Without Cannavaro?

Disaster struck the Azzurri yesterday when Fabio Cannavaro suffered an ankle injury in training and was ruled out of Euro 2008. Carlo Garganese asks just how big a blow this is to their hopes of glory in Austria and Switzerland…


For Italy fans of a certain age, an international tournament without Fabio Cannavaro is almost unthinkable. The Neapolitan has played at every World Cup and European Championships since 1998, and has been La Nazionale’s defensive rock at the back. During these 10 years probably only France’s Lilian Thuram can challenge Cannavaro as having been the most consistent and influential defender on the international stage. Make no bones about it – we are talking about a legend here.

Cannavaro’s withdrawal from Euro 2008 is a massive blow, and many people are already arguing that his absence signals the end of Italy’s chances of winning the tournament. First of all, despite his poor form for Real Madrid, when Cannavaro pulls on the Italy shirt he is a colossus. He may not be at the all-conquering levels from the World Cup two years ago, but anyone who saw his displays this season against the likes of Spain, Portugal and France will know that in the biggest matches he is still world class.

Cannavaro is Italy’s captain, leader, inspiration, organiser, and most experienced player with 116 caps to his name. Along with Gianluigi Buffon he is the man most responsible for the tactical brilliance of the Azzurri backline. Most worryingly of all, Italy are not blessed, as they have been in previous years, with great depth in the centre back department. With Alessandro Nesta retired, and Marco Materazzi struggling for form and fitness, the Azzurri will have to largely rely on the inexperienced trio of Andrea Barzagli, Giorgio Chiellini and replacement Alessandro Gamberini to fill the void. The other option is the 35-year-old Christian Panucci, who is fine in tactical matches, but hardly fills you with too much confidence.

Cannavaro brings the best out of his partners, as he did with the previously much-maligned Materazzi at the last World Cup. Barzagli was immense alongside him during the qualifiers before Christmas, but how will he cope without the 34-year-old? If his Palermo form this term is anything to go by, then not very well. Chiellini is a raw talent, but he can be tactically naïve. This tournament could now be the acid test for him. Meanwhile Gamberini has done excellently for Fiorentina this season, but it would be a huge gamble if he was thrown into the deep end at Austria and Switzerland.

Let’s try and put a positive spin on things though.

Except for Portugal, France, and possibly Spain, no other country has a better selection of centre backs to choose from at Euro 2008 than Italy, even with Cannavaro missing. So perhaps the outlook shouldn’t be too bleak. Just look at the quite dreadful Dutch defence that Italy will be taking on in their first game on Monday for an example of how bad some backlines are. The real question mark will be the understanding of Italy’s centre halves, as because of Cannavaro’s presence, none have ever been able to get to know each other. Even so there will still be the great Buffon behind them to save their skin.

It must also be remembered that the Azzurri often produce their best when the chips are down and they have to struggle. The fact that their lynchpin Cannavaro is missing may bond the team together. As a colleague of mine said: "it is the collective strength of Italy that makes them a success, not any one individual." The likes of Roberto Baggio (think 1994) may disagree with this point, but the idea sticks. The Azzurri have a winning mentality regardless of who plays. It is the same with Germany. How many times have we gone into a major tournament and been told that Germany have no chance? It happened in the 2006 World Cup and they finished third. It also occurred in 2002 when they came second, even if that scandalous competition holds no true value.

Donadoni’s attacking 4-3-3 system may also come in handy. Italy know they will not be able to grind out results, so they will have to make use of their offensive strength. And let’s face it, the Azzurri’s selection of strikers and midfielders is not half bad. The firepower from the likes of Toni, Di Natale, Camoranesi, Cassano and Del Piero has the potential to blow away opponents, so the Azzurri will now have to play to their strengths.

As mentioned before, the loss of Cannavaro is so huge a blow, it simply cannot be measured. However if there is one team who can succeed against the odds it is Italy, so write off Donadoni’s men at your peril