Pablo Aramayo Eguino's Colum

(Pablo is Fanclubx.com's latest columnist from Bolivia, yes he lives in Bolivia)

 

ITALY:  2006  SOCCER CHAMPION OF THE WORLD 
 
 

“THE RETURN  OF  THE AZURRI  GIANTS” 
 
BY:  PABLO  ARAMAYO EGUINO 
 

A  lot  of  soccer fans will remember  this year  for being one of  the  most  exciting  years in the history  of  the  greatest  and  most  popular  sport  in the planet: Soccer. 

This  year  marked  the  return  to the glory  for one  of soccer´s  greatest  national teams ever:  Italy , after  winning  this year´s  world  cup  after  24  years  of  disappointments, has proved not only to it´s  country, to it´s fans , but to the  whole world, that they´re  here to stay. 

This great  journey to the glory  began  with  the game against  Ghana, two goals were enough to beat the  African debutants, Italy dominated the game from the start to the end, showing a great superiority, but  one thing that got my attention was that  the Italian  coach  Marcello Lippi  never put from the beginning of any  of the 7 games two exceptional players:  Alessandro Del Piero and Filippo “Pipo” Inzaghi. 

In my  opinion this was a weird and bad  move because the two players were the stars of the Juventus Dream team that dominated  Italy, Europe and the World in different Championships in the mid  90´s  and this team was coach by who:  by  Marcello Lippi himself. 

Del Piero  played the 7 world cup games, but never from the start, and Inzaghi only played 1 game ( not  from the start) and he even scored, both players always started the games from the bench. 

After the first game Italy showed it was  a  serious candidate to win thw world cup in Germany, but some doubts came after the game against the US. , it  ended with a tie    1-1, Italy got two expelled  from the game and Alex (Del  Piero) got very close to score the winning goal, but US goalkeeper Keysey  Keeler stoped his dangerous shot. 

After that result Italy needed to win to qualify to the second round, and that´s what they did, and esay 2-0 win  against the Zech Republic was enough, Filippo “super Pipo” Inzaghi entered in the  2.-  period  and he scored the second Italian goal  showing his great striker quality, the same one he showed us years ago in Juventus. 

Alex Del  Piero had  played  all the games until then, but as a replacement, always entering in the second  halfs, but the times he did Italy´s group game improved a lot, showing coach Lippi and the world that he´s  the greatest player Italy´s ever had. 

The game against Australia in the 2.- round was one of the hardest for the Italians, they finally beat the aussies  1-0 with a very argued penalty kick at the end of the game, that was scored by a very world publicist player, very known most of all by his marketing and not for his game: Francesco Totti, this player has never given anything good for the Italian National team, and he only scores when he plays for Roma, his team in the Italian league. 

His number (10) and his position gained in the team weren´t well deserved, and  Alessandro Del  Piero would´ve contribuited a lot more for the team playing in his position in all the games, but from the start to the end of the 7 world cup games. 

The rival to beat in the Quarterfinals was Ukraine, and the Azurri once again showed all their power winning by a confortable 3-0, two goals were scored by Luca Toni, Fiorentina´s great scorer. Before the world cup he was believed to be the star of the team, but besides that two goals, he was just a great dissapointment, just like Gilardino  ( Milan´s striker). 

Despite those bad games from the previous mentioned players,  Marcello Lippi keeped on with his stuborness and continued to put  Luca Toni, Gilardino and  Totti in the starting line, (maybe because Italy was doing fine until then, but what was he waiting for? To  get eliminated? ). 

The semifinals were a great challenge for the Nazionale, the rival: none other that the Word Cup host and  3  times Champion: Germany, Italy had everything against them: the bets, the crowd, but  they had something very powerful that  sometimes works in soccer: the  sacred fire of history , and history says Italy beat  Germany in all  2  w.c. games they played before , incluiding the 1982 final in Spain (3-1). 

The Italians played one of the most spectacular games in their history, they  played with their heart, with  rage, with everything they got, but the game ended with a bitter 0-0, they had to go to injury time, both teams were very  tired, and suddenly when the 2.- injury time was about to end and everyone thought that penalty kicks were unavoidable, defender Fabio Grosso scored for the Azurri !  1-0  and they were a few minutes left, anything could´ve happened. 

Germany attacked with everything they had looking for the tie, but Italy stole a ball, and in the last Italian attack Gilardino makes a great pass to who? : to the great  Alex Del Piero who with all his soccer greatness scored the second goal for  Italia !!  the game is over and Italy once again is in the final again, after 12 years !  Del  Piero entered the game in the 2.- injury time, and he proved once again to his coach and to the world that he´s lethal, that when he plays  he always scores and his teams wins. 

The final came: July  9  2006, the rival: France, another soccer great national team who eliminated Spain, Brazil and Portugal in the previous rounds. 

Italy knew it wasn´t going to be easy, and it wasn´t,  at the beginning of the game France scored with a  very doubtful  p.k. by France´s star Zinedine Zidane, it wasn´t a good start,  but  the azurri wanted to win with all their heart, and at the end of the 1.- half  Marco Materazzi tied the game with a great head shot after a corner kick. 

After that, the score stayed the same until the end of the 2.- injuty time, p.k. were once again the ones to decide who was  going to be the new world champion. 

Many people (incluiding me) were on their knees and praying for not seeing another Italian  penalty kick catastrofe, ( the last 3 times Italy lost in p.k. definitions): against Argentina (1990 Semifinals) , against Brazil (1994 Final) and against France itself (1998 Quarterfinals). 

Thanks God this time history  lost, the p.k.´s  curse for italy ended, the five Italian players scored perfectly ( De Rossi, Pirlo, Alex Del Piero, Materrazzi and Fabio Grosso) three players scored for France, and  Trezeguet failed a decisive penalty and Italy won  5-3 and it´s fourth World  Cup in the country´s  history! . 

It  was a very exciting moment for me also, I waited for italy´s revenge for 12 years, I remember how angry I was when they lost in p.k. to Brazil in the US 1994 final, and  this year was the first time I watched Italy wining a World Cup,  Italy´s last  glory time raising the cup was in 1982 in Spain against Germany and I wasn´t even borned yet. 

This Championship was built on a great team effort, starting with the best goalkeeper in the world:  Gian Luigi Buffon, also a Juventus  goalkeeper, he only allowed 2 goals in the entire tournament, one was at his own goal by defender Zaccardo in the game against the US  in the 1.- round,  the best defense in the world: with  Cannavaro, Perrota, De Rossi, Materazzi and  Genaro  Gatusso, a great midfield attack with Zambrotta, Camoranesi, Fabio Grosso and an incredible attack line with Luca Toni, Gilardino, Totti, the Great Alessandro Del Piero, and “super Pippo”: Filippo Inzaghi, and lets not forget a great coach (despite his mistakes) : Marcello Lippi  : a real winner coach. 

The world of soccer salutes this world heroes and embraces the return of the Azurri Giants, after an unfair and very corrupt ( referees involved) world cup in Korea and Japan 4 years ago. 

Italy has proved that is the greatest soccer power in the planet once again, and the Azurra is here to stay! .  A  friend of mine was in Italy when the world cup was happening and he told me that the streets there were pandemonioum, the Nazionale is the new champion of the greatest sport event in the planet: the soccer World Cup, and everyone from Torino to Naples were singing: “ Siamo una squadra fortizima” ( we´re a very powerful team) and “Siamo campioni del mondo” ( we´re the world champions! ). 

Congratulations for all Italians and non Italians but fans of the Azurra: 

AGUANTE  ITALIA  CAMPEÓN  DEL  MUNDO !!!! 

AGUANTE  EL  TETRACAMPEÓN  MUNDIAL  !!!!

Pablo's pics when he visited NYC.