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Italy
Mario Balotelli, AC Milan (Forward)
Following his move to Milan from Manchester City, there was a breath of fresh air for Mario as he guided Milan to 3rd spot in Serie A, clinching Champions League football in the process. After ending his fractious stay at City, Balotelli has had a wonderful second half of 2012-13 as he scored 12 goals in his 13 appearances for Milan.
He did have that memorable semifinal performance against Germany in the Euros last year, but save for that, his performances have been nothing spectacular. For all his talent, he is yet to display that consistency and there is still that little bit of immaturity from him on the field.
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Former Brazil striker Ronaldo recently had some words of advice for Mario, asking him not to throw away his talent like Adriano did. Balotelli, in all likelihood, will be leading the line for Italy at next summer’s World Cup. Like Neymar and Dos Santos, he needs to show us that he’s worth the hype.
Riccardo Montolivo, AC Milan (Midfielder)
Like Michael Carrick for Manchester United, Montolivo will not blow you away with any great stats. But his importance to Milan and Italy is unquestionable. Montolivo primarily operates as a deep lying playmaker, but can move into a more attacking role when the situation calls for it.
He has great passing range and good ability on the ball and is viewed as the successor to Andrea Pirlo in the heart of Italy’s midfield. He has had a great season with Milan after he moved there last summer, following 7 seasons at Fiorentina. Italy will look to him to set up their attacking rhythm. And like Carrick, he is a very neat interceptor which helps his side break up the play of opponents.
The Trio of Andre Barzagli, Giorgio Chiellini and Leonardo Bonucci, Juventus (Centre-backs)
Sumptuous goals, dribbles, stepovers, cute backheels all make for great viewing. So does the art of defending, as exemplified by this famed trio. It does help when you play with each other so often as these 3 do for both club and country.
Watching Bonucci, Chiellini and Barzagli go about their defensive duties is a joy to behold. The organization and synchronization of their play is simply outstanding. Their positional play is so wonderful that it feels like they have an almost telepathic understanding of where the other is. The way they get their tackles and interceptions in, then recycle the ball and release it forward is like clockwork. Apart from the final, where Spain literally picked them apart, the Italian defence stood firm against all and sundry.
The Azzuri will look forward to more of the same from its 3 defensive specialists.
