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Italy are in a great crisis

England went to the WC without the usual fuss, but Hodgson has a team that can do a lot. Italy also hope to be at the top, but they have not won the last seven games

England participated in some of the earlier WCs with many more stars on their team. How great were those stars really? That becomes clear when we take a look at their results...

They came to Brazil with a bit less fuss, but that doesn't necessarily mean the expectations are lower. On the contrary, this England can get far. Their team is lead by 4-5 players from Liverpool, who have done the whole season at a very high level. Add stars like Rooney, or Hart to that mix and England can at least hope to reach the next round. The competition is tough - Italy and Uruguay. Costa Rica are the underdogs in the group.

Today's game is taking place in Manaus, the city every team dreads. The English have prepared for the tropical conditions in Miami. 

- It will be very, very hot. We can't afford to spend energy in vain, and resting is much easier if you're in possession. Once we have it, we'll do what ever it takes to keep it - goal keeper Hart said.

Hodgson opted for a 4-2-3-1 formation, which is used by many teams nowadays. But, they are indeed very offensively oriented, since they're all technically gifted forwards. But, the key role - to stop Pirlo - is assigned to midfielder Henderson. That is how they practiced it in the last training session, when Wilshere pretended to be Pirlo, and the midfielder from Liverpool didn't leave him alone for a second.

Tony Adam, the defender who used to play at Arsenal said:

- I think Hodgoson made a mistake choosing the defenders. I think Terry and Cole should have had a place at this team. I don't believe in all this talk about their age - Terry did 34 our of 38 championship games for Chelsea. Besides, Cahill and him are a duo. The last two Cups were won by teams with excellent center backs, unfortunately, I don't think Jagielka and Cahill are at Cannavaro or Ramos' level. No offense intended.

Italy opened the qualification for the WC furiously, and basically didn't need the points in the last two games, which is why they didn't win them. And that is when their bad period began. They didn't win another 5 friendly games, and especially painful was the draw against Luxembourg in the final game before WC.

Things didn't start well in Brazil either. Their left back De Sciglio got injured immediately, which cased quite a few problems. It seems like Prandelli is not sure whether to play with three or four players in defense anymore. Will he put Darmian back left, and Abate right, or will Chiellini move from the center back position to the left. That would mean that Palleta or Bonucci will make it in the line up.

- We've conceded too many goals lately. That has to change. We can't focus on Rooney only, they have 3 or 4 excellent, young, and fast players - Barzagli said.

The English want to keep possession, but the Italians will want it just the same. But, their team do have more midfielders, who are well acquainted with that task. It turns out Prandelli will start with five midfielders and Balotelli as the forward.

- We're ready for the game. We are prepared for the conditions, and we believe in the positive outcome. Buffon suffered a minor joint injury in the last practice session, but I hope he'll be ready. If not, Sirigu will - Prandelli said.

We also have to note that the pitch in Manaus is not in the best shape, which could cause problems for the players. Also, the referee assigned for the game is the Dutchaman Kuipers, whose average in the 82 international games is 3,79 yellow, and 0,21 red cards.

The situation is pretty clear here. England will play with 2 classic midfielders and four offensive players (forwards) whose primary task certainly won't be to safeguard the ball and pass it around. They have a Liverpool duo in midfield - Henderson who will focus on guarding Pirlo, and Gerard who will look for a long ball up front to their fast wingers. Sterling and Sturridge generally play a vertical game and don't bother too much with the horizontal passes. Their keeper Hart did say they will try to keep the ball in their possession but so will Italy. They have 5 classic midfielders, which includes De Rossi, Veratti and Pirlo. These guys don't go for the vertical ball after their first pass and will do more wider passes. A poor pitch might slow them down even more and I see them as having more possession. That doesn't necessarily imply a better team or a team closer to a win, quite the contrary.