The 2022 World Cup feels strange for a multitude of reasons. One of the factors behind the collective ennui of global football fans is the absence of Italy from the competition. The four time winners haven’t only provided quality to the storied history of the World Cup. Gli Azzurri as they’re known back on the peninsula, have always provided drama whether it is at their own or their opposition’s expense.
Below is an XI made up of the most iconic World Cup performers in Italy’s history. Whilst many in the team would walk into an all time XI, the criteria for inclusion is not simply talent. Each player must have provided an indelible moment in an Italy shirt, for better or worse. It is these moments, after all, that live in the collective memories of fans beyond statistics or winners medals.
Goalkeeper: Walter Zenga. 2 World Cups. 7 Appearances. 3rd Place (1990).
For a nation of great goalkeepers, it is surprisingly difficult to remember an iconic individual moment. Gianluigi Buffon and Dino Zoff’s winning campaigns were famous for their consistency but, when one closes one’s eyes to remember a World Cup goalkeeping moment, Zenga is who immediately springs to mind.
Iconic Moment: Naples, 1990.
Diego Maradona’s Argentina side are playing Italy for a place in the World Cup Final. Italy go ahead through Salvatore ‘Toto’ Schillaci’s tap-in and are looking good for a final on home soil. Sixty seven minutes in, Argentina’s Julio Olarticoechea sends a hopeful cross into the penalty area where Maradona and Claudio Caniggia await. The previously impervious Zenga decides to come for the ball, gets stuck behind Riccardo Ferri and Caniggia is free to head the ball into the net. Italy lose on penalties and Zenga, silver chain flapping out of his goalkeeping jersey, fails to save a single one.
Right back: Claudio Gentile. 2 World Cups. 13 Appearances. 4th (1978), 1st (1982).
No iconic Azzurri team is complete without the moustachioed, Tripoli born Gentile. Although his name will always be associated with Italy’s 1982 win, he was also a central figure in their underrated 1978 campaign. Perhaps the ‘hard man’ label he has received under plays his tremendous defensive talent and intelligence – he was only ever sent off once in his career and that was for a deliberate handball.
Iconic Moment: Barcelona, 1982.
Gentile is rarely mentioned in a sentence without Maradona. In 1982, the great Argentinian arrived in Spain to vast (justified) hype. Watching the match back, the number 106 is the most prominent on the pitch, Maradona’s 10 with Gentile’s 6 right next to it. A masterful display of man-marking that did cross the line at times (he was booked in the first minute) but it also shut down the Argentinian entirely, Italy emerged 2 – 1 winners and the victory kick started their World Cup campaign.
Centre back: Marco Materazzi. 2 World Cups. 5 Appearances, 1 Red Card, 2 Goals. 1st (2006).
Much better defenders have played for Italy, without doubt, but has a centre back ever had such a dramatic impact on a team on the biggest stage of all?
Iconic Moment: Berlin, 2006.
Perhaps *the* iconic moment of Italy’s World Cups is Materazzi’s chest being closely investigated by Zinedine Zidane’s head. What was or wasn’t said is still a matter of debate but the red card which the great Frenchman received edged the balance towards the Italians in the penalty shoot out. Materazzi was everywhere during the 2006 final, conceding the penalty which led to France taking the lead, scoring Italy’s equaliser and provoking the moment that will be talked about as long as footballs are still kicked on pitches.
Centre back: Paolo Maldini. 4 World Cups. 23 Appearances. 2nd (1994), 3rd (1990).
Maldini is a strong contender for the most unlucky player in the history of international football but it is easy to forget how well he played as both left back and centre back at four different World Cups. In 1994, he should have been named in the team of the tournament twice, in both positions, as he filled the vast gap in the middle that Franco Baresi’s mid tournament injury created, as well as producing several masterclasses at left back.
Iconic Moment: Daejeon, 2002.
The last 16 game against South Korea is often remembered for the questionable officiating delivered by Ecuadorean referee Byron Moreno but it also represents the nadir of Paolo Maldini’s great career. The game was a bad day at the office for Italy legends, with Francesco Totti being sent off in the 103rd minute. South Korea’s ‘golden goal’ just three minutes from the end of extra time does not make good viewing for Maldini, he was comfortably beaten in the air by Perugia’s Jung-Hwan Ahn. The sight of the once-great Maldini failing to deal with a striker of more humble talents encapsulated Italy’s incredibly disappointing campaign. Unlike Totti, there would be no atonement in 2006 for the greatest Italian defender of all time.
Left back: Fabio Grosso. 1 World Cup. 6 Appearances. 1 Goal. 1st (2006).
Football is a funny old game, as the cliche goes. Italy had a left back that would walk into any All Time XI for four World Cups but the easiest pick in this whole team is a player who, in 2006, only had one domestic honour to their name and that was an Intertoto Cup for Perugia.
Iconic Moment: Berlin, 2006.
The lazy narrative surrounding the 2006 World Cup final is that once Zidane had left the pitch, the game belonged to Italy. Before lifting the World Cup they first had to win a penalty shoot out – a task more difficult if one considers that their track record with spot kicks made England look positively Teutonic. Fabio Grosso approached the penalty box in full knowledge that, aside from 2002, Italy had been knocked out of every World Cup since 1990 on penalties. His meteoric rise to cult hero was completed as he hammered the fifth, winning spot kick into the top right hand corner of Fabian Barthez’ goal. A star was born that continues to burn brightly in the minds of football fans over fifteen years later.
Midfield: Marco Tardelli. 3 World Cups. 13 Appearances. 2 Goals. 1st (1982), 4th (1978).
Tardelli was part of a fine vintage of Italian central midfielders that could do it all. Gli Azzurri was blessed with players such as Giancarlo Antognoni, Salvatore Bagni and Fernando De Napoli who could tackle, pass and be impressive on the ball. Tardelli, however, trumped his contemporaries in his ability to win dozens of trophies – a habit forged in Turin whilst playing for Juventus.
Iconic Moment: Madrid, 1982.
‘Gol! Gol!’ – the Tardelli Cry is a celebration that is effortless to recall. An iconic image that newspaper picture editors and World Cup motion graphic designers have been thankful for ever since Tardelli’s long range beauty in the 1982 World Cup final against West Germany went in. Whilst Paolo Rossi caught the headlines in Spain, Italy would not have lifted the trophy without Tardelli’s all action performances.
Midfield: Andrea Pirlo. 3 World Cups. 11 Appearances. 1 Goal. 1st (2006).
In the mid 2000’s if you wanted to see a world class conductor in Germany, you would head to the Berliner Philharmonie to see Simon Rattle work his magic. In 2006, Sir Simon should have feared for his job when a new regista came to town.
Iconic Moment: Dortmund, 2006
The greatest moment in the greatest game of the tournament belonged to Pirlo. 119 minutes into a hugely engaging encounter with Germany, the Italian drew three Germans towards him on the edge of the box before releasing Fabio Grosso without even looking where he was. Grosso hit it first time into the bottom corner of the net and a nation celebrated.
Attacking Midfield: Giuseppe Meazza. 2 World Cups. 9 Appearances, 3 Goals. 1st (1934 & 1938).
A legend on both sides of Milan, Meazza deserves huge credit for excelling on the world stage in multiple ways. He served as both creator and goal scorer in his Inside Right role, enabling centre forward Angelo Schiavio (‘34) and later Silvio Piola (1938) to wreak havoc.
Iconic Moment: Paris, 1938.
It can be difficult to make comparisons between footballers during the pre and post war eras but Meazza’s performance in the 1938 World Cup final could make headlines today in Qatar. His dummied shot assist is an iconic reminder of how far ahead of the rest of the world he was just before war arrived to interrupt the beautiful game.
Number 10: Roberto Baggio. 3 World Cups. 16 Appearances. 9 Goals. 2nd (1994), 3rd (1990).
An icon in a team of icons. If you were to throw a stone at Roberto Baggio’s World Cups, you’d probably hit a memorable moment. In many ways the story of his journey through the biggest tournament in football follows a classic three act structure. Arrival in 1990 with his wonder goal against Czechoslovakia, crisis with his missed penalty in 1994 and then redemption in 1998 when he scored from the spot against Chile.
Iconic Moment: Pasadena, 1994.
Sorry Roby, but it has to be the image of you, hands on hips after skying that penalty in the 1994 World Cup final. The heartbreak, however is what cemented Baggio’s legendary status amongst us mere mortals. Whilst other greats like Pele, Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo’s genius makes them other worldly, Baggio became human that afternoon in Pasadena and has never left our hearts since.
Attacking Midfield: Gianni Rivera. 4 World Cups. 9 Appearances. 3 Goals. 2nd (1970).
Contemporaries Gianni Rivera and Sandro Mazzola were two of the most gifted number 10’s to play for Italy but very rarely shared the same pitch in the Azzurri shirt. Ferruccio Valcareggi’s ‘relay’ selection policy at the 1970 World Cup, meant that each player was played for 45 minutes.
In contrast, Brazil’s team was largely comprised of number 10’s with the famous five of Jairzinho, Pelé, Gérson, Tostão and Rivelino playing all over the pitch, seamlessly gelling into Mario Zagello’s famed 4-2-4 formation. This on the pitch unity proved decisive in the final against Italy with Brazil producing arguably the greatest team performance that the competition has ever seen.
Iconic Moment: Mexico City, 1970
Italy were 3-1 down with six minutes to play in the World Cup Final as Rivera entered the pitch. Their saviour from the substitute’s bench in the ‘game of the century’ semi final against West Germany was Rivera but Valcareggi only decided to introduce him when the final was lost. In a moment, Italy’s long standing selection conundrum was perfectly encapsulated.
Striker: Salvatore ‘Toto’ Schillaci. 1 World Cup. 7 Appearances, 6 Goals. 3rd (1990).
The double winner of the Golden Boot and Golden Ball award at the 1990 World Cup took all but the most optimistic of Sicilians by surprise. Schillaci himself, Italy’s number 19, barely expected to play but his remarkable campaign with 6 goals is one of the greatest tales in the history of the World Cup.
Iconic Moment: Rome, 1990.
The first Italy game of the 1990 World Cup and the hosts are wilting under the pressure of expectation inside the Stadio Olimpico. Andrea Carnevale, Italian champion with Napoli, is taken off after 75 minutes and replaced by Schillaci. Just three minutes later, the Juventus forward finds himself between the two Austria central defenders and heads in Gianluca Vialli’s cross. He peels away, waving his arms above his head like a demonic toddler, delirious with joy and the story of the tournament begins.
