Italy's draw in Sofia turns attention on fascist fans

Holders Italy were reasonably happy with Saturday's 0-0 draw against Bulgaria in World Cup qualifying Group Eight but were less pleased by some minor crowd trouble in Sofia.

With very few chances in the game, Italian media focused on a group of away fans who threw bottles at Bulgarian supporters and made fascist salutes and chants.

Sofia police arrested three Italian fans for setting a Bulgarian flag on fire during the national anthem, the Bulgarian state agency reported yesterday.

Four Bulgarian fans were arrested for trying to carry fireworks into the Vasil Levski national stadium.

Italy has been battling a soccer hooligan problem in recent years while there have been tensions with eastern European immigrants throughout the country.

"The fans need to be punished," Italian soccer federation president Giancarlo Abete told Rai television.

"Tickets were sold with names on them so we can trace every single person."

Before kick-off there were scuffles in the stands between fans and the police, but the problems seem to have been traced to the fact a group of travelling Napoli supporters are twinned with Levski Sofia.

They in turn ganged up to rally against the rival CSKA Sofia fans in the city, sparking another scuffle in a city centre bar.

On the field, debutant Simone Pepe had an average game while fellow striker Giuseppe Rossi, who came on as a substitute for his first cap, was more involved and could be pushing for a start in Wednesday's home match against Montenegro in Lecce.

Luca Toni will be missing through suspension after picking up a booking and has been replaced in the squad by Fabio Quagliarella, of Udinese.

The struggling Bayern Munich frontman made another uninspired appearance in Sofia as a substitute with the lively Alberto Gilardino, of Fiorentina, starting ahead of him.

"I'm satisfied with the way we played," Italy coach Marcello Lippi told reporters.

"We didn't create many chances but we also didn't allow the Bulgarians to score. This team is growing in experience after every single match."

Lippi had warned of Manchester United striker Dimitar Berbatov before the match, but Giorgio Chiellini kept him under control.

"We had seen Bulgaria's games and knew that 90 per cent of their attacking potential was based on this player, but this time he ran into a very strong defence - Chiellini, Cannavaro, Dossena and Zambrotta.

"I am glad to see that performance, as recently we had lost that defensive solidity that is the bedrock of any great team," Lippi said.