Italy is out!

Italy who is always a no hoper at the beginning of any World Cup is out. The only problem with them is that they are a late bloomer, they stabilized very late into the pressure. Teams like Spain, England and Portugal were also a late bloomer, but not as late as Italy. They needed 2 matches and being behind by 2 goals to wake them up. And that is just toooooooo late!

They can play like a champion once they are awake. Both goals showed their penetration skills, composure and experience. But another factor is the goalie. Buffon doesnt easily let balls like that in. But if nothing goes in, I doubt the outfielders are going to play like that.

Bringing out the best of the players right from the first game is the utmost critical factor in managing talents in a short span of championship like this. And so far Maradona is doing just that, and he is doing it like no other manager, hugging every single player after the match, having fun with the players during training, fielding all players to get them warmed up etc. The players really need all these fun & trust so that they can forget about the pressure, focus on having fun on the field and you will see a lot of excellent moves from these players.

Take one match at a time, focus to excel with every pass and you will win!