Del Piero Might Go To Swissaustria

April 29th, 2008 | by: chris | Comments Off

Along with the status of Roberto Donadoni’s contract, it’s the hot topic these days when discussing the Azzurri. You’ve got Alessandro Del Piero enjoying a renaissance of sorts this year, having turned the clock back to 1996 or something. Yet he still couldn’t crack the Azzurri squad because, well, his performances in azzurro haven’t exactly been spectacular and he just simply does not fit the tactics, which is probably the most overwhelming point.

Today, Donadoni seems to be leaning towards taking ADP to Swissaustria:

Asked if he would call up Del Piero for the tournament in Austria and Switzerland in June, Donadoni said: “Ten months ago no but now yes.

“The facts speak for themselves but I’ll only talk about my squad when the time is right.

What I want to know is why all the fuss? Why is this a big deal? If he comes, fine. If he doesn’t, fine. But it’s not as though he’s a tournament changer or even a starter. At best he’s coming off the bench, perhaps not even the first name off the bench, depending on the qualities The Don is looking for at the time (Vincenzo Iaquinta showing his capabilities as a supersub this season and Fabio Quagliarella, well, he can score from feckin’ Pluto).

The problem is still tactics for ADP. The Don seems to have settled on the 4-2-3-1 with Luca Toni up top and essentially two wing-forwards on the lateral flanks, almost certainly to be Mauro Camoranesi and Antonio Di Natale going in. Quite frankly, ADP is not capable of being a vice-Toni or anything close, which leaves his potential spot on the wings. A place where he has said he won’t play and doesn’t want to be called up if so. If you want to drop him as the trequartista, is Don really willing to play 3, maybe 4, guys who offer just short of nothing defensively, while Andrea Pirlo is a necessary addition in the midfield? No treq for ADP. (I’ve actually advocated him as the potential “1″ in a 4-3-1-2, but does Donadoni listen to me? Nooooooo.)

My question is why is this a big deal? If Alessandro Del Piero played for Napoli or Reggina, would this be an issue? Would the northern-biased media even care? Would the fact that Juventus is a glory hunters magnet have anything to do with this?

If he shows up as things stand he’ll be nothing more than a squad member and a late-game substitution, the same role he played under Lippi. Good. Great. Wonderful. Bring him. But will it really matter? And is it worth this much hullabaloo? Not in my eyes.