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The glamorous tie of the group of death commenced on matchday 3 as Italy and England came face to face in their opening fixture of Group D. Under the brutal conditions of Manaus, the two teams kicked off their World Cup campaign with Italy controlling the possession from the first whistle. England looked to hit on the break during the initial stages of the match and looked the likelier side to get the first goal.But Italy took the lead after Marchisio's shot went past Joe Hart from a well rehearsed corner. England hit back just 2 minutes later with Daniel Sturridge putting things on level terms. Mario Balotelli scored the decisive goal from a header in the second half and Italy held on to a 2-1 score line to put forth a strong case for them to qualify from their group. What were the decisive talking points from the tie? We take a look.
#1 Gabriel Paletta - Italy\'s weak link in defence
Talking about an unconvincing Italian defence may sound ridiculous as they have produced some of the legendary partnerships in the history of the World Cup. But Prandelli's men looked far from comfortable when defending against England specially in the first half. Making his World Cup debut in the Azzurris' colors was Gabriel Paletta of Parma who clearly had a tough time handling the likes of Daniel Sturridge and Raheem Sterling.
A communication gap did exist between him and Juventus' Andrea Barzagli. England breached the back line quite often and it was their poor finishing that let them down.Giorgio Chiellini on the left could not provide a threat while going forward even though he was solid while blocking England's attack on the left flanks.
Prandelli should consider Bonucci for the next matches as he and Barzagli will bring a better understanding owing to their defensive partnership at Juventus.
#2 Raheem Sterling and Daniel Sturridge: Roy Hodgson\'s young England looks promising
Even though they lost their first fixture, England supporters should be in a positive frame of mind after seeing a good performance from a fresh and young England side. Roy Hodgson employed a new look into the attacking line up as he went for the young legs of Danny Welbeck, Rahem Sterling and Daniel Sturridge. The trio provided pace and trickery up front along with Rooney as their experienced partner.
One can probably say that England have found a clinical finisher in the form of Sturridge since the days of a young Michael Owen. The Liverpool forward was on target and he gave a hard time to the Italian defence. An immense performance came to halt when he had to be substituted in the second half as he limped off the field. His club team-mate Raheem Sterling was deployed in a free role in an attacking midfielder's position and clearly was the best player on the pitch.
The decisive pass came from Sterling when he found Rooney on the left flank before the assist was provided to Sturridge for the first goal. He got the better of his opponents at times and looked promising overall on the night. Certainly some good signs from what Hodgson saw and despite losing their opening fixture, England have room to improve and can qualify out of their group phase.
#3 Italy\'s right flank key to their success
Before the start of the match, no one could have predicted that Prandelli would be favoring Torino left-back Matteo Darmian ahead of the experienced Ignazio Abate. And with a 4-1-2-1-2 formation it was quite predictable that Antonio Cassano's experience would be utilized to partner Mario Balotelli in attack.
But Prandelli preferred Antonio Candreva and fielded him just behind Mario although the Lazio winger constantly drifted to the right flanks to provide the width in attack. Darmian pushed forward quite often and supported Candreva in attack.
The first goal came from a beautifully worked corner from the right. And the second goal was created from the right flank as well after Candreva put in a well timed cross in the far post for Balotelli to finish it off. Candreva and Darmian were a constant threat throughout the game much of Italy's supplies came from that direction.
The plan worked out well for the coach and it remains to be seen whether he opts to go for the same duo in the remaining fixtures.
#4 Wayne Rooney misfires again for the Three Lions
It has become a frustrating sight to see Wayne Rooney underperform in English colours. The Manchester United attacker has been under the radar of criticism for performing below par and although he provided the assist for the first goal, he was poor in front of goal. Rooney had the opportunity to even things up when a loose ball fell at his feet. But the 28-year-old fired wide off the near post.
There was a wayward corner to add his to his misery in the second half and in the final 10 minutes of the game, an uncontrolled shot off target summed up an average night for the forward. Rooney will have to step up and anchor his team's attack against Uruguay and Costa Rica if they are to get past the group stages.
#5 Andrea Pirlo: From a Regista to a free-role playmaker
Exhausting conditions and a new role did have everyone’s attention glued on Andrea Pirlo as the veteran midfielder shifted to an advance position in place of the injured Montolivo to accommodate Marco Verratti in the centre. Prandelli's gamble proved to be spot on as the Juventus playmaker dictated proceedings and was all over the park working around with the possession.
A well worked dummy from the Italian maestro set up Marchisio for the first goal. The second half began in a similar fashion as Pirlo continued to dominate the midfield and linked up his team's play effortlessly. In the last quarter of the game, Italy decided to sit back and defend their one goal lead and Pirlo was in his usual deeper position as he tried to look for a pass on the break. In stoppage time, Italy earned a free kick and Pirlo almost converted the dead ball situation with an out-swinging shot.
El Architecto ended the match with a pass completion rate of 95%. Even though his role in the team didn't change at all, the advanced position provided a new dimension to Italy's game.
Whether he will be applied in the same role for the next fixtures by Prandelli remains to be seen.
