ALBERTO GILARDINO ended his 11-month goalscoring drought for Italy in a 5-0 European qualifying triumph over Brian Kerr’s Faroe Islands last night.

NEW ZEALAND coach Ricki Herbert was ecstatic last night after world champions Italy were saved from humiliation against his team of minnows only by a controversial penalty.

Italy 1 New Zealand 1

ITALY goalkeeper Federico Marchetti is excited about the opportunity to fill in for injured veteran Gianluigi Buffon tomorrow against New Zealand.

DEFENDING champions Italy had to come from behind to salvage a draw in their World Cup Group F opener against Paraguay in Cape Town last night.

Italy 1 Paraguay 1

Italy coach Marcello Lippi insists he will not rush chief playmaker Andrea Pirlo back from injury at the World Cup.

ITALY coach Marcello Lippi has dropped the strongest hint yet that his country’s best goalscorer will not start tonight’s World Cup Group F opener with Paraguay.

Italy have dropped Villarreal striker Giuseppe Rossi from their 23-man World Cup squad.

NOSTALGIA hanging heavy in the air above Dublin 4 just now, the other day I dug out my old copy of Simon Inglis’ definitive ‘The Football Grounds of Europe’ to see what the expert had to say about Lansdowne Road back when his sumptuous tome was first published in early 1990.

Fiorentina 3 Bayern Munich 2 (aggregate 4-4; Bayern progress on away goals)

Bayern Munich 2 Fiorentina 1

West Ham sporting director Gianluca Nani insists the Barclays Premier League club are not after Fiorentina striker Adrian Mutu.

RAFAEL BENITEZ will put all thoughts of the Europa League on hold in a bid to reignite Liverpool’s stuttering Premier League form.

LIVERPOOL captain Steven Gerrard reflected on his team’s Champions League campaign and admitted it had been “not good enough” after the Reds’ involvement in the competition finished with a 2-1 home defeat to Fiorentina at Anfield last night.

Liverpool 1 Fiorentina 2

Glenn Whelan is already living the dream and now he has France in his sights as the Republic of Ireland prepare for tomorrow’s World Cup showdown.

Liam Brady is confident the time has come for the Republic of Ireland to end their long wait for a victory over one of European football’s big guns.

Marco Tardelli has warned France the Republic of Ireland firmly believe they can beat them to snatch a place in next summer’s World Cup finals.

Giovanni Trapattoni is hoping to win the psychological battle as he attempts to guide his side to World Cup play-off victory over France.

RANGERS’ Champions League hopes were left hanging in the balance when a late equaliser from Unirea Urziceni denied them a crucial first victory in the tournament this season.

GOKDENIZ KARADENIZ stuck a second-half winner as Rubin Kazan claimed a shock Champions League victory over reigning European champions Barcelona at the Nou Camp last night.

Republic of Ireland boss Giovanni Trapattoni will prepare his players for two “cup finals” as they attempt to dump France out of the World Cup.

Shay Given has once again condemned FIFA's decision to seed the World Cup play-offs after the Republic of Ireland were handed a daunting clash with 1998 winners France.

FORMER Italy coach Dino Zoff last night hit out at Azzurri boss Marcelo Lippi for his negative reaction to fans in Parma following the Azzurri’s narrow victory over Cyprus on Wednesday night.

Former Italy coach Dino Zoff has criticised national team boss Marcelo Lippi for his negative reaction to fans in Parma following the Azzurri’s narrow victory over Cyprus last night.

Sean St Ledger is confident the Republic of Ireland can deliver the perfect response to their critics by booking a trip to the World Cup finals.

PORTUGAL booked themselves a place in the European play-offs for next year’s World Cup after an easy 4-0 Group One victory over Malta.

Italy 3 Cyprus 2

Stephen Hunt admits France’s superstars will not be afraid of the Republic of Ireland if they are pitched into a World Cup play-off battle.

The Republic of Ireland rekindled memories of their eventful trip to the 2002 World Cup finals when they very nearly claimed the scalp of reigning champions Italy on Saturday evening.

Republic of Ireland defender Richard Dunne has said that his side threw away a good position when they let Alberto Gilardino score a late equaliser for Italy in their World Cup qualifier in Croke Park on Saturday night.

Shay Given felt as if the Republic of Ireland had been dumped out of the World Cup when reigning champions Italy snatched a famous victory from their grasp.

ON Saturday night in Croke Park, Ireland were like the man whose numbers come up in the lotto only to discover that he’s lost the winning ticket.

Giovanni Trapattoni is confident no-one will relish being drawn against his Republic of Ireland team in the World Cup play-offs after their near miss against holders Italy.

Robbie Keane is expecting the Republic of Ireland to have to do it the hard way if they are to reach next summer's World Cup finals.

Republic of Ireland boss Giovanni Trapattoni has urged his team to learn from their painful lesson after Italy snatched World Cup victory from their grasp.

Republic of Ireland goalscorer Sean St Ledger admitted his side's frustration despite holding world champions Italy to a draw for the second time in World Cup Qualifying Group Eight.

Republic of Ireland 2 Italy 2

Rep of Ireland 2 Italy 2

ITALY will need to display character to handle the problems the Republic of Ireland will inevitably cause them in tomorrow’s World Cup qualifier at Croke Park, Gianluigi Buffon said last night.

IT’S only when Sean St Ledger points out that he has yet to play for his country in Croke Park that the astonishing rapidity of his rise from relative obscurity and through the Irish ranks really hits home.

Italy coach Marcello Lippi has named a 24-man squad for the World Cup qualifiers away to the Republic of Ireland on Saturday and at home to Cyprus four days later.

LIVERPOOL fans are familiar enough with uncertainty over club finances and their owners’ intentions to have some sympathyfor their opponents tonight.