DUISBURG, Germany -- They packed all the important stuff
when they traveled to the World Cup: pasta, prosciutto and
parmesan.
Italy might be hungry for its first World Cup title in 24 years,
but the Azzurri aren't lacking the comfort food they're familiar
with. As they prepare to face France on Sunday, they have
everything they're used to -- drama, delirium and distraction.
Last-minute goals, controversial calls and a scandal back home
that has prosecutors asking for the nation's biggest clubs to get
dumped into the minor leagues. Most other nations would go nuts.
But for Forza Italia, it's just another day at the stadio.
Alessandro Del Piero, who scored the second goal in Tuesday's
2-0 win over Germany, has taken to comparing himself to mythic
heroes. Asked why he didn't talk to reporters before the
tournament, he gave a unique response.
"I went up on my hill to think like Achilles did before war,"
he said. "It's not important to me how many wars I fight, but how
I fight them."
Francesco Totti, who converted the last-minute penalty kick that
beat Australia in the second round, has a tattoo of a gladiator on
a shoulder. Well, he has lived his entire life in Rome.
For the Azzurri, everything is divided between the ultimate
highs and disastrous lows, with little in between. It's just the
Italian penchant for melodrama.
After the semifinal win, coach Marcello Lippi told his players
theatrically that their story remained unfinished, as if a composer
had died before writing his final bars.
"Ora dobbiamo completare l'opera," he said, which sounds far
more mundane in its English translation: "Now we have to complete
the job."
MSV Arena, the home of MSV Duisburg, has been renamed Casa
Azzurri. There are red, white and green banners everywhere, with a
gold star in each color -- where will they put the fourth star if
they win their fourth title?
The salamis hanging are Italian. So is the coffee. Even the
beer.
Nearby is the team hotel, Landhaus Milser. It's co-run by a
native of Calabria, and many of the employees are Italian.
Apparently to minimize distractions, female waitresses were sent on
vacation.
In a hot room at Casa Azzurri filled with more than three dozen
television cameras and 100 reporters, Del Piero talked about what
it meant to be in the final. "Magnifico" and "bellissimo," he
kept repeating.
"It's a fantastic moment," he said. "Undoubtedly, a World Cup
is singular. It's one of the three, four dreams you have as a
boy."
Seemingly eager to be the underdog, Del Piero proclaimed the
French the favorite.
"Because of what's happening to the clubs in Italy isn't
happening in France," he said. "Because in France there's not
this much media following the team. And unfortunately, because of
the tragedy that has afflicted a teammate very close to me."
His first reference was to the match-fixing scandal that
threatens Juventus, AC Milan, Forentina and Lazio with relegation.
His last was to Gianluca Pessotto, his former teammate on Juventus
and the national team, who fell off a window at the Juventus
offices on June 27. Pessotto remains hospitalized in serious
condition.
Del Piero and Pessoto played together in the 2000 European
Championship final, when France scored a tying goal with 30 seconds
left in second-half injury time and went on to win in extra time.
Del Piero missed two good scoring chances in the second half of
that one.
"Regret is to say little," he said then. "I feel guilty."
It appears that six years later, he hasn't gotten over it.
"No one suffered more than me in that match," he said, "but
Sunday is a new game and a new battle."
Paolo Rossi, hero of Italy's 1982 title, was at Casa Azzurri as
a television commentator. In dark movie-star sunglasses, former
star Gianluca Vialli also was walking around.
Del Piero had the stubbled face that's typical of Italian soccer
players. In the corner of the room was Carlo Tramontozzi, the
former soccer coach of St. Francis, N.Y. He works for the Italian
soccer federation as a "collaboratore," helping set things up.
Tramontozzi, who lives in New York, remembered the trip from New
Jersey to California after the 1994 semifinal win over Bulgaria.
Captain Franco Baresi, playing three weeks after knee surgery, and
Roberto Baggio, on the field despite a hamstring strain, both
missed penalty kicks four days later as Italy lost the final to
Brazil at the Rose Bowl 3-2 in a shootout after a 0-0 tie.
"The night before, we didn't know whether Baggio would play the
next day," Tramontozzi said. "We have a really healthy team this
time. ... Only an error or bad luck will beat us."
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AP Sports Writer Andrew Dampf contributed to this report.