Italy Draws Against Paraguay

Pin It Now! The World Cup defending champions, Italy began their title defense on a not too impressive note, as they were held to a 1-1 draw by their South American opponent, Paraguay, this evening.

Much was expected from the Italians; and being the defending champions, a lot of people thought the Paraguayans would not be difficult for them to override. But it soon became clear that the South Americans were no push over as they became the first to hit the back of the net.

The Italians started well, looking good enough to carry the day. They got their first corner kick as early as the 3rd minute but it wasn’t utilized to their advantage. They continued to mount pressure on Paraguay. In the 22nd minute, Ricardo Montolivo dispossessed the Paraguayan last defender of the ball, but lost it to the goal keeper after a solo run. In the 24th minute paraguay’s Torres shot wide in the 18 yard box.

Paraguay drew the first blood of the encounter in the 39th minute when Antolin Alcaraz nodded in a pull out which beat Italy’s goal keeper hands down. Thereafter it became a much balanced game. In the 54th minute, Enrique Vera wasted an opportunity that would have increased the goal tally for his side.

On resumption of the second half, some vital changes were made to the Italian side to sharpen their attack. Mauro Camoranesi replaced Claudio Marchisio in the 59th minute, and this brought more bite to the attack. The pressure on the South Americans paid off in the 63rd minute, as De Rossi brilliantly tucked in a corner kick to make scores 1-1.

In the 67th minute, Ricardo Montolivo was pushed down in the yard box by Paulo Da Silva, but his appeal for a penalty was ignored by the centre referee. Mauro Camoranesi got a yellow card in the 70th minute for his rough tackles. In the 73rd minute, Alberto Giladoni was replaced by Antonio Di Natale: the Italians were really determined to win the match but Paraguay proved too strong to be easily over powered.

While the European side piled up pressure, the South Americans tightened their defense and resolved not to concede more goals. Statistics showed 10 shots at goal by Italy and 8 by their opponent; 8 corner kicks for them while their opponents had 4, ball possession was 52%:48% yet they couldn’t win the match. Antolin Alcaraz was voted ‘Man of the match’. Score line at full time stood at 1-1.

Italy Draws Against Paraguay