Lippi upbeat despite injuries

WORLD CUP 2010 Qualifying: Bulgaria v Italy  Sofia - 7.15pm: ITALIAN COACH Marcello Lippi struck a confident note as he set off for Sofia yesterday. He said: "What really pleases me is all the new players have settled in perfectly with the senior players. For that reason, I'm setting off for Sofia full of confidence", writes Paddy Agnew

ITALIAN COACH Marcello Lippi struck a confident note as he set off for Sofia yesterday. He said: "What really pleases me is all the new players have settled in perfectly with the senior players. For that reason, I'm setting off for Sofia full of confidence."

Injuries mean Lippi has had to anticipate his rebuilding process. Although he was playing his cards close to his chest, he seems likely to award a first cap to 26-year-old striker Simone Pepe, in for the injured Mauro Camoranesi.

Pepe will probably line out alongside Luca Toni and Antonio Di Natale in a three-man attack, while once-capped Fiorentina midfielder Riccardo Montolivo, who played in Italy's team at the Bejing Olympics, could replace Simone Perrotta alongside Gennaro Gattuso and Daniele De Rossi in midfield. Palermo goalkeeper Marco Amelia steps in for the injured Gigi Buffon to win his seventh cap behind a defence that will be led by the reassuring figure of Fabio Cannavaro, winning his 119th cap.

Italy, far from impressive in opening wins against Cyprus and Georgia, face a Bulgarian side that features Manchester United's Dimitar Berbatov in attack. Bulgaria opened the group with a late-earned 2-2 draw with Montenegro.

As the Bulgarians prepared for tonight's game, reports suggested the players were concerned about their safety when they travel to Tiblisi to play Georgia on Wednesday. Some of the players yesterday suggested it was "unbelievable" the Bulgarian Federation had not followed Ireland's lead and campaigned for at neutral venue.

ITALY: (4-3-3) Amelia; Zambrotta, Chiellini, Cannavaro, Dossena; Gattuso, De Rossi, Montolivo; Pepe, Toni, Di Natale.

BULGARIA: (4-4-2) Ivanov; Milanov, Tunchev, Iliev, Vagner; S. Petrov, Yankov, Dimitrov, Lazarov; Berbatov, M Petrov.

© 2008 The Irish Times

This article appears in the print edition of the Irish Times