Italy Eliminated in First Round

Italy, the winners of the 2006 World Cup, were eliminated following a 3-2 loss to Slovakia. To add insult to injury, the Italians ended up last in their group, behind New Zealand, one of the tournament's biggest underdogs. Can't imagine that will go over too well in Rome, Florence and Milan. While it is surprising that they were eliminated so early, to call it "stunning," as some headlines have, is a bit extreme. Heading into the tournament, the team selection of head coach Marcello Lippi was criticized for being too old and lacking offensive talent. The squad then opened up with a 1-1 tie against Paraguay, then followed that up with a shocking 1-1 tie against New Zealand in which they went behind 1-0 early and needed a charitable penalty call to get the draw. So after two lackluster results where the team offered little in the way of inspiration, nobody should be stunned that the Italians underperformed again and were eliminated. Going into the final group match with a chance to advance, most people (myself included) assumed Italy would draw on their vast experience at the international level and pick up a win against the Slovakians. But this World Cup has showed us over and over again that past results mean very little. It wouldn't have been surprising if Italy had gotten the result they needed today, but it also isn't surprising that they lost and are heading home early.