WORLD CUP FINAL - FRANCE v ITALY - MATCH PREVIEW I - INTRODUCTION
Andy Morgan
Italy - 1st, Group E
Group Statistics: W2 D1 L0 F5 A1 Pts7
Second Round: Italy 1-0 Australia
Quarter Final: Italy 3-0 Ukraine
Semi Final: Germany 0-2 Italy (aet)
Top Scorers: Luca Toni, 2 (18% of Italy's goals)
Clean Sheets: 5
Failed to Score: 0
Best World Cup record: Winners three times, 1934, 1938 and 1982
2002 World Cup Record: Lost in Second Round to South Korea
Overall World Cup statistics: World Cups, 16 P76 W44 D14 L18 F118 A73
Interesting Stats:
1) Francesco Totti has provided more assists than any other player in
this
World Cup (four).
2) Gianlugi Buffon has made thirty-four saves in this tournament. This
is
the fourth highest number behind Ghana's Richard Kingston
(thirty-eight),
Portugal's Ricardo (thirty-seven) and Togo's Kossi Agassa (thirty-six).
3) Only Germany and Portugal have had more shots than Italy have had
(Italy
have had ninety-one). Fifty-one of them have been on target. Italy have
the
best ratio of shots on target to shots on goal in the competition.
4) With only one goal conceded in this competition, Italy have the best
defence after Switzerland.
5) Italy have suffered more fouls than any other team in the
competition,
with 126.
France - 2nd Group G
Group Statistics: W1 D2 L0 F3 A1 Pts5
Second Round: Spain 1-3 France
Quarter Final: Brazil 0-1 France
Semi Final: Portugal 0-1 France
Top Scorers: Thierry Henry 3 (38% of France's goals)
Clean Sheets: 4
Failed to Score: 1
Best World Cup record: Won once, 1998
2002 World Cup Record: Knocked out in group stage
Overall World Cup statistics: World Cups 12, P50 W27 D6 L17 F94 A63
Interesting Stats:
1) France have not lost a knock-out tie in the World Cup since 1986,
where
they lost in the semi-Finals to West Germany.
2) Realistically France's Thierry Henry is the only other player who
can
obtain the Golden Boot. He needs two goals to tie with Germany's
Miroslav
Klose.
3) After Germany, France have committed more fouls than any other team,
with
ninety-six.
4) After Italy and Germany, France have suffered more fouls in the
competition, with 111.
5) France have had more yellow cards than only three other teams in
this
tournament. They have not had a player sent off though.
Match Preview
Introduction
Oh how attitudes change! Six weeks ago Italy was embroiled in a
footballing
scandal that threatened to eclipse the national side's achievements at
this
tournament. It engulfed their preparation with many of Italy's players
unsure whether they would have a club in Serie A to come back to. Focus
was
on home events rather than on Germany and few gave their national side
any
chance of winning football's biggest prize.
France meanwhile were still haunted by the spectre of their performance
in
the last World Cup, crashing out in the group stages after that opening
day
humiliation against Senegal. The knives were out for French coach
Raymond
Domenech before the competition started. It was feared that his squad
would
be a national embarrassment, it's age preventing it from performing to
the
high standards that the French public expected.
The feelings in both camps worsened during the Group Stages.
Italy did enough, finishing comfortably top of their group but their
performances were far from inspired and attracted criticism from much
of the
Italian press. The farciacal 1-1 draw against the USA highlighted
perceived
difficiences in the squad, with many rounding on Francesco Totti and
Luca
Toni for being goalshy. It was only Fabio Cannavaro and Marco Materazzi
at
the heart of an extremely solid Italian defence that kept them from
being
eliminated. The typical solidness was there but the famous Italian
flair was
sadly lacking.
France were awful in their first two games and had to rely on beating
Togo
by two goals in their last Group game to qualify. Against Switzerland
they
represented a rabble who had only just met each other, with none of the
players being on the same wavelength. Impotent in front of goal, their
performance was embarrassing and the French press was even more
defeatest
than it had been building up to the competition.
They threw the game away against South Korea, letting the Asian side
get an
undeserved point after over an hour of French domination. Humiliation
was a
much oft used word on the other side of the Channel as France stumbled
but
against Togo it did finally all click.
It was not until the knock-out games that both sides delivered. A
timely
warning to all England fans who criticised England's group-topping
performances, France and Italy peaked at the right time whilst better
teams,
such as Argentina and Brazil fell by the wayside.
Italy were fortunate against Australia, a blatant dive gifting them
with a
1-0 win against Australia after Matterazi had been sent off for the
Azzurri.
But from then on in they were clinical. Three goals in their
Quarter-Final
against a poor Ukraine (which represented half of the total goals
scored in
the Quarter-Final stage) allowed them to rediscover their clinical
attacking
prowess. The link-up play had suddenly come and everything clicked.
This was demonstrated against Germany although they struggled to break
the
German back-line. The creativity was flowing and the moves they put
together
breathtaking as shot after shot rained on the German goal. Jens Lehmann
was
up to them however and it took two wonderstrikes near the end of
extra-time
to put them deservedly into the final.
France meanwhile came of age against their neighbours Spain. There is
often
no love lost between the two and France's performance in the last
forty-five
of that game made them worthy winners. Spurred on by Zidane and the
revelation of the tournament, Marseilles Franck Ribery, confidence
started
flowing back into the veins of Les Bleus. Exhilirating, exciting and
admittedly unexpected, the French press had a field day whilst France
looked
to Brazil in the hope of causing an upset.
And an upset they caused. France beat Brazil in the 98 Final and using
this
as a spur were by far the better team in this contest. Everything
clicked
for France that day, particularly between Zidane and Thierry Henry who
found
an understanding that at times, they have struggled to discover.
Nothing could stop them now. They took the confidence but not the
performance into the game against Portugal. They were lacking in
fluidity
that day but deservedly beat the Iberian side with a Zidane penalty
after
Ricardo Carvalho brought down Thierry Henry in the box. Suddenly the
French
press were on the side of Raymond Domenech. They had derided him as a
'loser' prior to the tournament, preferring to focus on his lack of
managerial achievement (indeed, he has won nothing as a manager). Now
he's a
hero. Oh how fickle the press is.
So neither side believed they would be here although deep down they
were
hoping their dreams could become reality. Both countries knew they had
the
players but thought the time was not now. Both countries derided their
teams
early on and watched them scrape through the group stages. And both
countries saw classy displays in the knock-out stages.
Both teams have struggled in attack whilst defensively they have been
solid.
And both teams have done just what they needed to in order to progress.
It
may not be the Final everyone had hoped for but both teams deserve to
be
there. And it's hard to predict which way it's going to go. Let's just
hope
it's a good one.
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