Chiellini's regret and relief

Chiellini's regret and relief
Saturday 14 June, 2008

Giorgio Chiellini admits the Nazionale’s rollercoaster campaign is leaving him dazed and confused.

“We created many scoring opportunities and even hit the back of the net with Luca Toni,” said the defender of the 1-1 draw with Romania.

“Had that goal not been incorrectly disallowed, the game would have changed radically. Paradoxically, instead we have to thank Gigi Buffon for saving that penalty, otherwise we’d already be out.”

The result and Holland’s 4-1 thrashing of France means it all goes down to the final game between the 2006 World Cup finalists.

There is more to it, though, as Romania will take second place if they beat the Dutch, regardless of the other scoreline.

“At the end of the day, Romania only had one chance in the first half from open play, when the referee got in Andrea Pirlo’s way and Mutu ran towards goal. For the rest, Niculae is a good player, but we controlled him without problems.”

Juventus defender Chiellini was one of five changes to the starting XI and forged a curious central partnership with fellow full-back Christian Panucci.

“On a personal level I did everything I could and am happy with my performance, but the disappointment of the result remains.

“We played well, crossed often and had even more shots on goal. We hoped to win, as it would have been important.

“We mustn’t let our heads drop, as we can still qualify. We will try to beat France.”

*channel4