Azzurri to face Romania in international friendly on November 17th
According to latest media reports in Italy and Romania, the Italian and Romanian national teams are set to lock their horns in an International Friendly set for November 17th.
The two countries were to play a friendly in 2007 but following riots between Catania and Palermo ultras, the match was cancelled. The horrific incident saw policeman Filipo Raciti lose his life under tragic conditions.
The violence in Italian football is a big concern for the authorities. Incidents such as Raciti’s death and stabbing of football fans have resulted in ever diminishing Stadia appearances in the peninsula.
Although, the reports have been published in Italian media, Federazione Italiana Giuoco Calcio (FIGC), the Italian football body is yet to confirm the news. The Romanian authorities have shown their interest in making up for the lost opportunity.
The friendly, if played, will provide newly appointed Azzurri coach with another opportunity to test his squad. The tactician will be able to test his squad and experiment further before he chooses his ideal starting eleven. Prandelli has led the Azzurri
in only three matches so far and had the misfortune of having a number of injury causalities. Prandelli took the reins of the national team after the Azzurri’s calamitous performance at the World Cup 2010 under Marcelo Lippi.
Prandelli managed Fiorentina before he was appointed as the National team coach. With Viola, he holds a legendary status after breaking a plethora of records including most games (240), most number of victories (117), most number of Serie A matches (190)
and most Serie A victories (96).
The fixture will also allow Adrian Mutu to make his international comeback, that too against his former manager, following his football ban in the wake of his failed doping tests last year. The striker failed a doping test last year on the eve of the clubs
fixture with Lazio.
Following his failed test, the striker was slapped with a nine month ban what will end on 29th October 2010. It is debatable whether Romania coach, Răzvan Lucescu, will allow the controversial striker to enter the Tricolorii setup. Mutu stands
third in the list of Romanian national team goal scorers of all time with 29 goals, just six shy of Gheorghe Hagi’s all time record of 35 goals.
Tags: