Catenaccio N/A

With the World Cup just days away some of you may have already purchased your team's official jersey, are preparing to host a party, just attend one, take in the random pub scene, or are practicing your happy dance ahead of street celebrations. But how does one survive this period , maximizing the excitement, riding the hype, and getting through the disappointments? If you're young or old, a novice or an expert, here is my guide to the FIFA World Cup, based on the 6 tournaments I have survived. 1) Pick a Team Decorated Italian coach Giovanni Trapattoni is once said "there is no such thing as an [Italian] national team fan" . Ok Trap, Italy is seldom the neutral fan's darling, but with only 32 teams making the World Cup, someone's bound to get left out. Bottom line: even if your nation did not qualify pick ONE team that you support fully , from the start and make it public. Tell your friends, put a twibbon  on your twitter profile, get a small fl...

As anticipated yesterday, Giuseppe Rossi held a press conference this afternoon in Florence. "The past few months have been tough for me, of hard work and with the support of my family, my team mates and Luke Bongiorno. Now I'm well, and I must thank all of those who helped me ", remarked the 27 year old from New Jersey. On his return to the scoresheet, Rossi said " Yesterday's goal was truly beautiful , alas it was only our second versus the four that Sassuolo scored. I dedicate it to my father, but also to my girlfriend and my sister who flew over just to see me play, and to Fiorentina fans, who've always supported me". What interests Serie A lovers and those who hold dear the fate of the Italian national team, however, is Pepito 's return to la Nazionale: "All I have to do is play and demonstrate that I'm in good physical form and am able to lend a hand to the azzurri . I never thought about not going to the World Cup. I want to...

When Brazilian national team coach Luis Felipe Scolari "suggests" you should get competitive playing time, you should take the hint. With former Inter shot stopper Julio Cesar sitting idle at Queen's Park Rangers (collecting only one club appearance this season), Scolari hinted that Cesar get ship-shape for the World Cup by signing for a Major League Soccer (MLS) club. The MLS represented one of the last options available to Julio Cesar for playing top flight soccer. In summer 2013 it became clear that Julio Cesar would not be a permanent fixture in QPR's starting eleven, due in part to his 2.5 million GBP annual salary.   Attempts to sign the Brazilian by SSC Napoli and AFC Fiorentina failed in the 2013 summer transfer window as the clubs were unable to find an agreement on wages, and (in Napoli's case) image rights.   The January transfer window proved just as fruitless, leaving Julio Cesar with limited options to play competitive club soccer, with T...