We Won't Put Man on Zidane, Zoff Says
GEEL, Belgium (Reuters)(DS) - Italian coach Dino Zoff said on Saturday he would not assign a player to mark French midfielder Zinedine Zidane in Sunday's Euro 2000 final and would stick to his usual game plan. "Zidane is undoubtedly a great player...but we certainly can't afford to sacrifice a man next to Zidane," Zoff told a news conference on the eve of the final. "Anyway, it's often useless to do that. So, we will try to play to our own strengths -- as long as we get the chance to do so, of course."
Zoff has built a classic counter-attacking Italian side which ground down the Netherlands in the semifinal, forcing a 0-0 draw over 120 minutes before winning on penalties. But he has never opted for the markers who characterised vintage Italian sides of the past.
"We do everything we can to play our own game, if our opponents allow us," Zoff said when asked about his much-criticised approach to the semifinal. "The Dutch didn't allow us to. They were playing at home and they're a strong side. "But in our other matches we have played normally, attacking, defending and attacking again. When you go forward it has to be done with balance. If not, it's suicide."
Zoff said he had yet to decide who would replace the suspended Gianluca Zambrotta on the right side of midfield. "It's between (Gianluca) Pessotto and (Angelo) Di Livio," the coach said. He declined to say who would start up front for the Italians but Francesco Totti is likely to replace Alessandro Del Piero, who struggled against the big Dutch defenders in the semifinal
ITALY SEEK REVENGE
Pessotto, used only as a substitute in Italy's last two matches, said the Italians wanted to avenge their defeat by France in the quarter-finals of the last World Cup. "It was a painful defeat," the Juventus midfielder said, recalling the 0-0 draw which the French won on penalties. "We want to win for ourselves and also because of 1998."
Fabio Cannavaro, one of the four defenders charged with stopping the world champions, agreed with Zoff's approach to taming Zidane. "We don't mark but we have to be good at closing him down as soon as he gets the ball," the Parma full back said. "Like all great players, he has to be kept under tabs." Goalkeeper Francesco Totti, the man-of-the-match who saved three Dutch penalties in the last round, said he would forget those heroics once the match in Rotterdam started.
"I'll try to forget everything that happened because if we rest on our laurels were finished," he said. "We have absolutely no fear of the French. We consider them one of the strongest sides in the world -- with Italy. "Fabien Barthez is one of the best goalkeepers in the world and he's proved that at this championship," Toldo said. "He's an unusual keeper because he's very fond of coming off his line and doing extravagant things which you don't see very often." Toldo said that if he could remove one player from the French side it would be striker Thierry Henry and not Zidane. "He's scored a few goals and he's in great form," the Fiorentina keeper said.
