I was unlucky, says Del Piero

September 5, 2000
Onefootball.com

Alessandro Del Piero has defended his performance for Italy against Hungary on Sunday, claiming he was the victim of bad luck, while coach Giovanni Trapattoni has again attempted to deflect criticism away from the Juventus forward.

"I didn't play badly," Del Piero protested. "People who criticise me have no faith. I missed that shot because the ball bounced badly."

The Juventus forward was widely blamed in the Italian media for Italy's disappointing 2-2 draw in their World Cup qualifier in Hungary, but Trapattoni has again spoken out in defence of his team and Del Piero in particular.

"I will play with the same kind of team, with two strikers and Totti and Fiore ahead. Del Piero played well. But you can't call him poor. In any sense, he is a fantastic talent. Other players made mistakes."

There was support for Del Piero also from his Italy team-mate Alessandro Nesta. "He was unlucky, so maybe some people thought badly of him," the Lazio captain said. "But he is a great player."

And Marco Tardelli, the Juve great who scored in the 1982 World Cup final, is a firm believer in Del Piero as well. "Del Piero is a fanastic player - he played a good game in Hungary. I saw him moving better than in other recent matches," he said.

Bologna striker Bepe Signore was another to express his faith that Del Piero will return to form, despite the fact that people have been waiting for the return of the real Del Piero for so long that his club president Giovanni Agnelli has taken to calling him Godot.

"There's no crisis with Del Piero. When there's a champion in Italy we try to knock him down in any way we can. I don't know why. Really, in Hungary, Del Piero was unlucky."

Juventus will play their last friendly in preparation for their Champions' League campaign against Monza on Tuesday. Aside from Del Piero's lack of form, the big worry is Filippo Inzaghi, but he should be back in training on Friday.
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