After a month of intense competition, the World Cup comes to a dramatic conclusion on Sunday, July 9 when France faces off against Italy in the championship match in historic Olympic Stadium in Berlin, Germany. This should be one for the ages, as two traditional European powerhouses attempt to win the world’s greatest trophy. In head-to-head competition, Italy leads the series with 17 wins, 7 losses, and 8 draws; however, the last time Italy beat France was in the 1978 World Cup.
The Expected line-up for Sunday’s match:
Italy (4-4-1-1): Buffon; Zambrotta, Cannavaro, Materazzi, Grosso; Camoranesi, Gattuso, Pirlo, Perrotta; Totti; Toni.
France (4-2-3-1): Barthez; Sagnol, Gallas, Thuram, Abidal; Vieira, Makalele; Ribery, Zidane, Malouda; Henry.
This game is really a toss up. Both teams are experienced on the international level and come from winning countries. Both teams have legitimate superstar players in Zinedine Zidane and Alessandro Del Piero, but with all that being said, I’m pulling for Italy to win the World Cup because they were in the same group as the United States. If my team can’t win, I at least want someone from my team’s group to win, so the world can know that my team played in a tough division, and perhaps their play wasn’t as bad as it seemed.
1 comment:
Congrats to Italy on winning the World Cup! Remember, I picked them to win!
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