Italy's decline

New Zealand's 1-1 draw with World Cup holders Italy has been hailed as the greatest result in the Oceanic island's history. There is little doubting that claim, considering the Kiwis best result before Sunday's tie with the Azzurri was the draw against Slovakia on matchday 1. This is New Zealand's second World Cup; they qualified for Spain 1982 but made no impact on the tournament whatsoever, losing all three group matches as expected. They were tipped by many for a repeat performance in South Africa but Ricki Herbert's team have done much better so far in 2010.

Paraguay, the only team New Zealand have still to play, currently top Group F with four points. Herbert's side are joint second with Italy on two. In all probability, the Kiwis will have to beat Paraguay in the final group match to qualify for the last 16 and that will be a difficult task. If Paraguay win that game they will top the table and Italy would go through second with a win or a draw against Slovakia.

Marcelo Lippi's world champions were supposed to sail through their group with ease, but their stuttering form has left them needing a result in the last match to progress and their likely reward is a clash with Bert van Marwijk's Holland side in the first knockout round. On current form, the Italians would be clear underdogs heading into that one.

Four years is a long time in football. Italy are a shadow of the team that won the World Cup in Germany in 2006. Only remnants of that all-conquering side remain scattered throughout the current squad, and most of those names have been diminished by age.

The problem with Italy is not tactical, it is technical. It is a strange and unique case that Italy's most gifted player, Francesco Totti, is not in the World Cup squad. The Roma captain officially retired in 2007 and he resisted Roberto Donadoni's attempts to bring him back for EURO 2008. After nearly three years in the international wilderness, Totti announced that he would be available for a World Cup recall under Lippi, but the veteran manager opted not to take him to South Africa.

So Francisco Totti was left out, but what happened to the rest of the team that started the 2006 World Cup final?

Gianluigi Buffon is still a world class goalkeeper and Italy's first choice between the sticks but he has a back problem which saw him replaced by Cagliari's Federico Marchetti in the opening match against Paraguay and he was not fit to return against New Zealand.

Marcello Lippi resisted a sentimental call up for Juventus left back Fabio Grosso - whose goal gave Italy a semi-final win over Germany four years ago - after a poor season for the Old Lady.

Fabio Cannavaro became only the second defender to win the FIFA World Player of the Year award after leading his country to glory in 2006 but, despite the fact that he still wears the captain's armband, he is now well past his best at nearly 37 years old.

At least in the case of Marco Materazzi and Alessandro Nesta, who shared the responsibility of partnering Cannavaro in Germany, they have conceded their losing battle with age and  are no longer in the international frame.

Gianluca Zambrotta can still be seen storming (or sauntering) up and down the right side of the pitch but he is a shadow of the player he once was.

Gennaro Gattuso, another ageing veteran, is in the Italy squad but he is used sparingly now.

Andrea Pirlo is perhaps the only player carried over who is still capable of performing to his 2006 level, but a pre-tournament  injury has left him short of fitness and he has been restricted to the bench so far.

English-born 32-year old midfielder Simone Perotta is no longer in contention after a steady decline in influence over recent seasons.

Mauro Camoranesi has looked Italy's best player in his two cameo appearances coming off the bench against Paraguay and New Zealand and he is pushing for a start against Slovakia on Thursday, but he is another one fighting a losing battle with age.

33 year old striker Luca Toni fell out of favour at Bayen Munich at the beginning of the season and a move to Roma at the end of 2009 did not do enough to get him a place in Lippi's provisional squad.

That golden generation is now at an end and the players coming in to fill the gaps are simply not as gifted. The declining quality of football in Serie A is partly to blame. Inter Milan were the exception to the rule last season, winning an unprecedented domestic treble, but Italy's top tier is now a one party state and Inter's dominance is such that it has now been six years since a team other than the nerazzuri has claimed the Scudetto.

In fact, it was only Internazionale's European Cup success that saved Italy from falling behind Germany in the UEFA coefficient list, which would have had dire consequences for the league as Serie A would have conceded it's fourth Champions League slot to the Germans. That eventuality has been staved off for another season at least, but that day will inevitably arrive unless the FIGC (Federazione Italiana Giuoco Calcio) can halt the decline.

Inter's success is actually detrimental to the strength of the national team. There was not a single Italian in Jose Mourinho's starting eleven for the Champions League final in Madrid and so, incredibly, Italy's title holders for the last five seasons do not have a single representative in Marcelo Lippi's World Cup squad.   

Antonio Di Natale hit 29 goals for Udinese and has been the standout player in Serie A this season despite being 32 years old; he currently leads Italy's attack. But this is a man who didn't make the Azzurri squad back in 2006 in his prime at the age of 28 and here we have a perfect example of the gulf in class between 2010 and 2006. Di Natale is often under rated and he could be important for Italy if they are to defy the odds and extend their run in the competition beyond next week. I, for one, am not expecting them to.