by Alan Marshall
HOLDERS Italy had to mount a frantic fightback to start their latest World Cup campaign with a draw against Group F rivals Paraguay last night.
Having started well in the first half at Green Point Stadium the 2006 winners were stunned when Wigan-bound defender Antolin Alcaraz rose to head home a 39th-minute free-kick.
Italy's blushes were spared to some extent, however, as Daniele de Rossi slid in to punish a mistake by Paraguayan keeper Justo Villar after 63 minutes and snatch a draw.
Italian coach Marcello Lippi tried to talk up a disappointing result on a rainy night in Cape Town. He said: "We are only at the beginning and I'm sure we'll succeed. Paraguay were described as fierce opponents so I'm very happy.
"There was a good reaction on our part to going behind and we equalised. The only thing I regret is that normally we win matches of this type."
Scorer de Rossi said: "We deserved to win. We controlled the ball virtually the entire time but it's not easy against teams who dream simply of drawing with the world champions. And if you fall behind it becomes even tougher."
As expected, Lippi left Serie A top scorer Antonio di Natale on the bench, preferring Alberto Gilardino as the main central striker with Vincenzo Iaquinta out wide.
Gerardo Martino also opted to omit two high-profile forwards in Benfica's Oscar Cardozo and Roque Santa Cruz of Manchester City.
Borussia Dortmund team-mates Lucas Barrios and Nelson Valdez were deployed in Paraguay's attack instead.
Claudio Morel had to be alert to stop Simone Pepe pouncing on a dangerous ball at the back post in the sixth minute as Italy set the early pace.
Their passing and movement was delightful, with Juventus midfielder Claudio Marchisio central to much of the flair on display.
Paraguay did exert some pressure midway through the half by forcing two corners but they came to nothing. They might have been punished when Italy mounted a promising counter-attack but Riccardo Montolivo could only hit a weak shot at Villar. Continue reading here...
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