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Italy |
| 1 | - Gianluigi Buffon |
| 2 | - Cristian Zaccardo |
| 3 | - Fabio Grosso |
| 4 | - Daniele De Rossi |
| 5 | - Fabio Cannavaro |
| 6 | - Andrea Barzagli |
| 7 | - Alessandro Del Piero |
| 8 | - Gennaro Gattuso |
| 9 | - Luca Toni |
| 10 | - Francesco Totti |
| 11 | - Alberto Gilardino |
| 12 | - Angelo Peruzzi |
| 13 | - Alessandro Nesta |
| 14 | - Marco Amelia |
| 15 | - Vincenzo Iaquinta |
| 16 | - Mauro German Camoranesi |
| 17 | - Simone Barone |
| 18 | - Filippo Inzaghi |
| 19 | - Gianluca Zambrotta |
| 20 | - Simone Perrotta |
| 21 | - Andrea Pirlo |
| 22 | - Massimo Oddo |
| 23 | - Marco Materazzi |
Qualifying star: Luca Toni got better and better, his goals proved crucial and he has been rewarded with the number nine shirt in Germany.
Manager: Former Juventus coach Marcello Lippi took over after Giovanni Trapattoni's contract was not renewed following an early exit from Euro 2004. Will be looking to add a World Cup to his impressive CV that already boasts five Serie A titles and a Champions League trophy with Juve.
Captain: The 32-year-old Juventus defender Fabio Cannavaro will be playing in his third finals. He missed their embarrassing defeat to Korea in 2002 due to suspension.
World Cup history: The Azzurri are one of the sides who go into each tournament as a candidate to win. Have made the finals 15 times and won the World Cup three times (1934, 1938 and 1982).
World Cup high: In 1982 they overcame a poor start to shock a great Brazilian side 3-2 in one of the classic games in finals history. They went on to beat Germany in the final.
World Cup low: It will be a long time before their second-round loss to Korea will be forgotten.
World Cup legend: Paolo Rossi. Italy may have had better players but nobody has had such an impact on a World Cup as Rossi in 1982. He scored a hat-trick to down Brazil, both of their semi-final goals against Poland and another in the final.
Stars of the team: There is no shortage of big names, but even the mercurial and, to the relief of the country, fit again Francesco Totti will have to play second fiddle to Toni if the Fiorentina front man continues banging in the goals.
Strengths: As ever the defence is watertight, while probably only Brazil can match their strength in depth in attack.
Weaknesses: With so many options the biggest problem for Lippi will be finding the right combination up front and keeping everyone happy - in particular the established names.
Did you know? At the World Cup finals in Italy in 1990 the average goals per game was the lowest in the history of the tournament (a measly 2.21).
World ranking: 13
| Year | Country | Placed |
| 1930 | Uruguay | - |
| 1934 | Italy | 1st |
| 1938 | France | 1st |
| 1950 | Brazil | 2nd, pool 3 |
| 1954 | Switzerland | Playoff, pool 4 |
| 1958 | Sweden | - |
| 1962 | Chile | 3rd, gourp 2 |
| 1966 | England | 3rd, gourp 4 |
| 1970 | Mexico | 2nd |
| 1974 | Germany | 3rd, group 4 |
| 1978 | Argentina | 4th |
| 1982 | Spain | 1st |
| 1986 | Mexico | 2nd round |
| 1990 | Italy | 3rd |
| 1994 | USA | 22nd |
| 1998 | France | Quarterfinals |
| 2002 | Korea/Japan | 2nd round |
Odds supplied by William Hill.
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