Reply With Quote
Homegrown talent?
Really?
The only homegrown talent that country has ever produced were Gianni Rivera, Roberto Baggio and Franco Baresi
Yeah, let them ignore immigrants and see how they do with homegrown fettucines
LMAO Italy
http://msn.foxsports.com/foxsoccer/w...ignites-debate
ing Italy and their racist overtones.ROME (AP)
The selection of a Brazilian-born player for Italy's national football team is fueling a debate with racial and xenophobic overtones in a country that has supplied millions of immigrants to other nations but struggles to integrate its own.
A lawmaker with the Northern League government party, known for its anti-immigrant rhetoric, claims Italy should promote homegrown talent rather than making room for ''leftovers'' from other nations.
INTERNATIONAL FRIENDLIES
Tue., Aug. 10
United States vs. Brazil
Italy vs. Ivory Coast
Wed., Aug. 11
South Korea vs. Nigeria
South Africa vs. Ghana
Ukraine vs. Netherlands
Denmark vs. Germany
Austria vs. Switzerland
Poland vs. Cameroon
Serbia vs. Greece
Sweden vs. Scotland
Ireland vs. Argentina
Angola vs. Uruguay
England vs. Hungary
Norway vs. France
Mexico vs. Spain
Slovenia vs. Australia
Amauri, a Brazilian native getting his first chance to line up for the country where he has spent most of his career, says he will play ''against prejudice.''
''I wanted Italy,'' Amauri said from the Azzurri's training ground in Monday's Gazzetta dello Sport. ''I'm happy and proud.''
Amauri's call-up for Tuesday's friendly against the Ivory Coast in London was part of efforts by new coach Cesare Prandelli to inject some fresh blood into the team after Italy's embarrassing group-stage exit at the World Cup in South Africa.
The 30-year-old Amauri is a late bloomer who has never played either for his country of birth or Italy. He gained Italian citizenship in April by way of marriage and had hoped to be picked for the World Cup, but he was in poor form last season and was omitted from the team.
Also getting a call-up for Italy is Mario Balotelli, a talented 19-year-old of Ghanian descent who has been the subject of racial taunts from fans at games in Italy for the past two seasons.
''I will play against prejudice,'' Amauri said. ''Mario and I will do everything we can to make these people change their minds.''
If Balotelli's case has highlighted the plague of racism in Italian stadiums, Amauri's call-up has brought to the fore the issue of naturalization of foreign-born players.
The topic of dual nationality and choice was apparent at the recent World Cup. While many played for their countries of birth, some didn't. According to current FIFA rules, players with dual nationalities are free to switch sides at any age, as long as they haven't appeared in an official game.
2010 FIFA WORLD CUP
* Burns: Wacky Maradona will be missed
* Trecker: U.S. World Cup bid gets boost
* Webster: Forty impressions from SA
* Galarcep: Beautiful Game also triumphs
* Spain, Holland fined for final behavior
* Maradona out as Argentina manager
* Dutch winger haunted by WC final miss
* Spain wins first-ever World Cup le
PHOTOS AND VIDEO
* World Cup images homepage
* Spain celebrates world le in Madrid
* Final: Spain vs. Netherlands
* Ticket to SA: Spain's ultimate glory
* Ticket to SA: Germans take third
The debate is especially sensitive in Italy, a country where mass immigration is a relatively new phenomenon and where tensions occasionally flare up between Italians and a growing immigrant community. While Italy's long coastline does attract large numbers of immigrants every year, mostly from North Africa, many try to move on to other European nations, or are repatriated.
''Talent and Naturalized Players: A message for the Future,'' was the headline of a front-page editorial this weekend in La Repubblica, welcoming Prandelli's choices.
The newspaper said Prandelli had launched ''a political signal, rather than a technical one: The new Italy is open to (naturalized players), and hopefully, like Germany, to the sons of immigrants.''
In the wake of Italy's flop at the World Cup, many Italian commentators praised the German squad, which featured among others a Brazilian-born player and one of Turkish descent, as a model for the future.
But not all agree.
''The real representatives of this country aren't its foreigners,'' said Northern League lawmaker Davide Cavallotto. ''What Brazil refused, we took,'' he said, calling Amauri a ''leftover.''
Cavallotto reportedly urged the Italian football federation to start promoting homegrown talent, as it did in the past with players like Roberto Baggio and Francesco Totti.
The Northern League is not new to such provocative comments. During the World Cup, the party's radio station drew rebuke when it rooted for Paraguay in Italy's opening game and party officials said Italy players were overpaid.
Daniele De Rossi, Italy's captain in Tuesday's friendly, said the decision to call up players does not rest with the League.
Speaking to reporters Monday, he noted that Mauro Camoranesi, an Argentine-born midfielder, had been part of Italy's squad for years, including when the Azzurri won the 2006 World Cup.
''As far as I and my teammates are concerned, whoever comes into this group will be well received,'' De Rossi said.
For his part, Prandelli is holding firm.
''There will always be controversy,'' he said. ''I'm going ahead, because I think it's the right path.''
World Cup 2010 = LMAO ITALY
LMAO LIPPI
Homegrown talent?
Really?
The only homegrown talent that country has ever produced were Gianni Rivera, Roberto Baggio and Franco Baresi
Yeah, let them ignore immigrants and see how they do with homegrown fettucines
LMAO Italy
italy makes the best divers, no wonder why they only want italian 100% full blooded divers
This
And Catenaccio experts
LMAO italycatenacciodivewhingspaghettihairgel
they must enjoy being all white and all out in the 1st round
This doesn't suprise me at all. Here's another article:
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/11/29/sports/29iht-cup.html
Yet still, in soccer, bigotry abounds. In Italy and Spain last weekend there were two examples of racism in the stadiums.
Marc Zoro, a defender from the Ivory Coast, was reduced to tears after being subjected to racist chants while playing for Messina against Inter Milan.
Zoro, justifiably proud that he is going to the World Cup with his nation next summer, took matters into his own hands. He picked up the ball and planned to hand it to the fourth official, the reserve referee, as he walked off.
He was intercepted by Adriano and Obefami Martins, the Brazilian and Nigerian forwards for Inter. They calmed Zoro. They apologized for the foul-mouthed Inter fans. They persuaded Zoro that to quit the game, to seek to abandon the field to the racists, was a precedent soccer could ill afford.
"I agreed when I was calm," Zoro said. "But I want respect, only respect."
Zoro has played in Italy for three years. He is 21. He has been abused before. But previously it was away from Messina, in Sicily. This was a case of Inter fans traveling down and targeting a player "in my own house," as Zoro put it.
Italy has responded with many decent words from leading figures in the sport. "The Inter fans have insulted human nature," said Marcello Lippi, the national team coach. "There is only one race, the human race."
But the Italian soccer federation has decided to respond with only the most futile of gestures. It announced Monday that all matches in the Italian league and cup this week will start five minutes late as a mark of protest against racism.
In Spain, two Espanyol of Barcelona players, the Cameroon goalkeeper Carlos Kameni and the Brazilian midfielder Fredson, were subjected to racist chants in Madrid by Atletico fans. The match ended 1-1, and the Espanyol coach, Miguel Ángel Lotina, claimed that his goalkeeper's concentration was broken by the noises behind his goal.
Thanks for the article
Yeah, not surprising.
Zinedinne Zidane used to hear racial slurs every single match when he was playing for Juventus and RMA
There is also Mourad Meghni (algeria, missed the WC because of an injury), who is playing for Lazio Roma.
Most of Lazio fans are Mussolinists
Who's more racist Spain or Italy?
Well Spain has had hundreds of years of mingling experience with other non-white cultures, while this is Italy's first time they are experiencing other cultures in their country.
What do you mean by 1st time for Italy ?
How long ago ?
Spain is the only country that comes to mind that has had recent success with their 100% ethnic Spanish players(I think David Silvia was the only one that wasn't fully Spanish?). But their Basketball team is all Spanish. You look at the German, English, and French national teams and they all have African European players with a few token white players playing the Steve Kerr role.
For Germany, it's recent
In the 70s 80s early 90s, they won with 100% local dudes
This is the first time in their history where they are living side by side with other non-white cultures in their peninsula. Countries like England, Spain, and Portugal have intermingled with different cultures and even brought back some of them top their homelands. The only time Italy has ed around with non-Caucasian cultures was back in Roman times but the majority were slaughtered for entertainment.
And I think Germany could do it again! Germans are known for being tough, strong m ers.
Ah ok
Man that goes wayyyyyyyyyy back
italy 0
ivory coast 1
And Balotelli was by far the best Italian today
lmao white italians owned by s
Ivory Coast had 59% possession.
That is everywhere in Spain and Italy.....monkey chants, bananas thrown on the field, Nazi salutes......the list goes on. Cameroonians Eto'o and Kameni have gone threw it and it's beyond embarrassing as a Cameroonian to watch that . Then the Italian Fed decides to have a 5 minute delay on matches to protest racism....... ing laughable really.
The new coach is trying to move in a new direction with new players on the national team and the Northern League basically decides to insult the coach and Amauri by calling him a "leftover" from Brazil. them all. Gotta love the Italians approach to get more fans........gotta order my new t shirt.
That t-shirt
northern italians are s and racists
the northern league is a racist organization full of a bunch of french s that think they are italian
you have no ing idea what you are talking about lol
totti, toni, buffon, cannavarro, pirlo, del piero....
dont believe what terrorists tell you.
lefty wants a mosque built on ground zero
LMAO Italy.
LMAO at Italy!
i love the jealousy!
Yeah we are all jealous of a team that is not able to win with a 100% local mafioso diving team
CROFLAZETTAMAMAMIA Italia
There are currently 1 users browsing this thread. (0 members and 1 guests)
Posting Permissions
