Last week, Italy and the Netherlands became the first two European nations to qualify for the 2014 World Cup finals in Brazil.
In Group B, Cesare Prandelli’s Italy needed back-to-back home wins against Bulgaria (1-0) and Czech Republic (2-1) to secure qualification with two games to spare.
Italy have dominated their group with nearest pursuers Bulgaria seven points behind. Such was Italy’s supremacy that their qualification for the World Cup was never in doubt.
The four-time world champions have won six of their eight qualifiers. Italy dropped their only points in away draws against Bulgaria (2-2) and Czech Republic (0-0).
They are still unbeaten, scoring 15 and conceding only five in the process but Italy’s domination should be placed in the right context.
To start with, Bulgaria, Denmark, Czech Republic, Armenia and Malta – the other teams in Group B – are too modest opponents to be considered as a yardstick against which one can measure Italy’s prospects for next year’s tournament.
A case in point is Italy’s friendly against Argentina at Rome’s Oly-mpic Stadium on August 14. On that day, Italy were second best to the South Americans who won 2-1.
Although this was not a competitive fixture, it still served to expose the gulf in quality between Argentina and Italy.
Argentina, alongside hosts Brazil and defending European and world champions Spain, are the early favourites to reach the World Cup final on July 13, 2014 at the Maracana Stadium.
Furthermore, Italy have not been consistent in their performances, alternating impressive showings with lacklustre ones in games where they were lucky to avoid defeat.
In the past two weeks, speculation that Prandelli is likely to quit the national team after the World Cup finals has increased.
Although there has been no official comment from Prandelli or the FIGC (Italian football federation) on the issue, these rumours seem to be founded and there is a strong possibility that Italy will have a new coach when the 2016 European Championship qualifiers get underway in less than a year’s time.
Prandelli has successfully built a competitive squad after Italy’s dismal showing at the 2010 World Cup when Marcello Lippi was in charge.
The former Atalanta, Parma and Fiorentina trainer managed to lead Italy to the 2012 European Championship final, where they lost to Spain after an impressive run, and next year’s World Cup finals.
Needless to say, Italy need stability.
Whether Prandelli stays or not is of secondary importance at this stage. Italy must focus on doing well in Brazil. It will not be easy because, as always, the expectations are high and so is the level of competition.
Italy have a valid team but are behind Argentina, Brazil and Spain in terms of strength-in-depth. Thus, if Italy are to erase the 2010 shambles by going far in next year’s tournament, they need to be on top of their game.
Italy’s debut in the 2014 World Cup is still nine months away. This gives Prandelli enough time to keep trying new players in certain positions, like for example Marco Verratti and Lorenzo Insigne.
It is a known fact that, barring injury, Italy’s chances in Brazil strongly depend on the performances of Gianluigi Buffon, Andrea Pirlo and Mario Balotelli.
If Prandelli can find the right players to complement these stalwarts, Italy’s chances of making their mark in Brazil would increase significantly.