Italy’s Gattuso announces his retirement from national squad after World Cup

AP Azzuri midfiellder, Genaro Gattuso plans to retire from international football after the World Cup.

Italy stalwart Gennaro Gattuso said Saturday he planned to retire from international football after the South African World Cup.

The 32-year-old midfielder was instrumental in the Azzurri’s World Cup victory four years ago. But he has been struggling with a knee injury and was often relegated to the bench by his club A.C.Milan during the past season.

“Wearing this jersey is the most beautiful thing there can be,” Gattuso told reporters at Italy’s training grounds in Centurion. “But when you are nearly 33 years old it is right to make room for youngsters.” However, while confirming that he would be “done with Italy” after the World Cup, the midfielder said he dreamt of one day leading the Azzurri as their coach.

Gattuso, an energetic defensive midfielder known as “ringhio” (growl) for the way he lashes at his opponents, first played for Italy in 2000. He has been capped more than 70 times since but is not assured of a place when Italy take on Paraguay in their Group F clash on Monday.

Top 10 World Cup Football Stars With Immigrant Backgrounds

The son of Algerian immigrants inspired France's team of immigrants to World Cup glory in 1998, but Zinedine Zidane does not have to be football's only fairytale immigrant story. (American readers: "football" used here means "soccer.") Immigrants and sons of immigrants have long enriched most successful international teams. From Italy's consecutive World Cup wins in the 1930s courtesy of several Argentinians to the most outstanding Portuguese player of the 20th century hailing from Mozambique to the fact that most footballers at this year's World Cup play in leagues outside their home country, football is clearly the ultimate migrant sport. With a new ruling from the Federation of International Football Association (FIFA) allowing players to move more easily from representing one country to another, teams are set to get even more diverse. In the meantime, here is a quick look at some of the best footballers of immigrant descent on the field at the World Cup in South Africa, which began yesterday:

1. Miroslav Klose (Germany): Born in Poland, Klose gained German citizenship through his father. Easily among the best strikers in the world, Klose was the top scorer and thus the Golden Boot winner at the 2006 World Cup in Germany with five goals, and also netted five goals in the 2002 World Cup. Klose is likely to once again play a big part in the Germany squad for this World Cup.
2. Klose's teammate, Mesut Özil, is a German-born midfielder of Turkish descent that Germany snatched from Turkey in a controversial tussle last year.
3. Giovani dos Santos (Mexico): The son of Brazilian player Gerardo dos Santos and a Mexican mother, Giovani was born in Mexico and also plays club football in England. He is coming to this World Cup after much hue and cry about his brother, Jonathan dos Santos, being dropped from the squad. Some say that Giovanni dos Santos can have a much better tournament than Argentinian star (and possibly the best player in the world) Lionel Messi. Unlike Messi, dos Santos continues to play consistently and come out firing for his country.
4. Ashley Cole (England): Known as one of the best left-backs in the world, Ashley Cole was born in England to a father from Barbados. Never one to shy from controversy, Cole has been the target of several attacks from the anti-immigrant right-wing British National Party of Nick Griffin that believes "Britain is only for the British." Someone should alert the British National Party that immigration could possibly help England win the World Cup. But maybe that glory won't settle well for the BNP if it comes with the help of immigrants. God save the Queen.

Team Profile: Portugal

GettyImagesEusébio top-scored at the 1966 World Cup finals

Appearances at finals:
1966 - Third place
1986 - First round
2002 - First round
2006 - Fourth place
Overall record at finals: Played 19, Won 11, Drawn 1, Lost 7.
Best performance: Third place in 1966.
Most appearances at finals: Luís Figo (2002, 2006) - 10.
Most goals at finals: Eusébio (1966) - 9.
World Cup high: Eusébio scoring four goals in one match as Portugal beat North Korea 5-3 in the quarter-finals of the 1966 World Cup.
World Cup low: After battling to qualify for Mexico 86 the tournament was marred by the Saltillo affair, when players refused to train in a dispute over fees with the Football Federation. Portugal went out in the group stage following a 3-1 defeat to Morocco.
World Cup legend: Eusébio plundered nine goals at the 1966 finals, finishing as the tournament's top scorer.
The story so far: Portugal have become a force in world football over the last decade, but it has not always been that way. Only twice had the nation made it to the finals prior to 2002.
As they now have the attacking talents of 2008 FIFA World Player of the Year Cristiano Ronaldo and Simão, following on from the golden era of Luís Figo and Rui Costa, Portugal have the players to make an impact at the finals.
Although Portugal have only been to the World Cup four times, they can boast two semi-final appearances. They failed to reach the final both times, however, losing to eventual champions England in 1966 and then to France in 2002. In 1966, they finished third in the competition by beating the Soviet Union 2-1 in the third-place play-off.
Qualification: Portugal struggled through qualification and seemed to be heading out of the competition until a late rally saw them grab the play-off place from Group One. The campaign did not start well, with a home defeat to eventual group-winners Denmark and a 0-0 draw at home to lowly Albania setting the tone for a stuttering campaign under Carlos Queiroz. Portugal then needed a last-minute winner to win the return match in Albania and it took another last-gasp goal to earn a point in Denmark.
Queiroz then managed to get his side in form as they won their final three qualifiers, scoring eight goals without reply, which included a vital home-and-away double over Hungary - edging into second place by one point. They were seeded for the play-off draw and were paired with Bosnia, winning both legs 1-0 courtesy of goals from Bruno Alves and Raul Meireles.
Qualifying record: P10, W5, D4, L1, F17, A5, Pts19.
Most appearances: Raul Meireles (12).
Top goalscorer: Simão (4).

Brazil

It almost goes without saying that Brazil, the five-times world champions, go into every FIFA World Cup™ heavily favoured to add yet another star to the legendary Amarelinha shirt. Having played for A Seleção at three editions of the global showpiece, coach Dunga will be fully aware that any outcome other than a sixth world crown will likely be considered a failure.

The road to South Africa
The fans' at times vitriolic reaction to Brazil's results and performances particularly early on in the qualifying phase illustrates just how demanding they can be. Despite ending the preliminary event on top of the standings, after recording nine wins, seven draws and two defeats, and having clinched a South Africa 2010 berth with three matchdays to spare, the Auriverde camp had been subjected to a torrent of abuse after successive goalless home draws against Argentina, Bolivia and Colombia. Dunga's charges really hit their stride from April 2009, however, racking up five wins in a row including two landmark away results: a 4-0 humbling of Uruguay in Montevideo and a 3-1 defeat of arch-rivals Argentina in Rosario. It was the latter which confirmed their passage to South Africa.

The star players
Picking just a few names from a country so prolific at producing footballing talent is no easy task, though 2009 did underline the importance of certain key players. Starting between the sticks and we have keeper Julio Cesar, whose safe hands are a vital feature of A Seleção's miserly defence. The triumphant FIFA Confederations Cup South Africa 2009 campaign cemented Kaka's place as the man Brazil look to for inspiration, a fact reflected in him taking the adidas Golden ball. Meanwhile up front, Luis Fabiano proved himself a truly world-class finisher with five goals including a priceless brace in the 3-2 final win over the USA.

The coach
Upon taking the job in August 2006, Carlos Caetano Bledorn Verri, better known as Dunga, had already experienced the full gambit of emotions that come with playing for Brazil. Indeed, having been among the scapegoats targeted after the disappointment at Italy 1990, the powerful midfielder skippered Brazil to victory four years later in the USA. Despite the Brazilian national team position being his first coaching role, Dunga answered those who doubted his credentials by guiding A Canarinha to triumph in the 2007 Copa America, the FIFA Confederations Cup 2009 and qualifying the team for South Africa 2010 with room to spare.

Records
- Brazil are preparing to contest their 19th consecutive FIFA World Cup finals. They are the only country to have taken part in every edition of the global showpiece.
- They are also the only country to have won the title five times: amassing a total of 64 victories, 14 draws and 14 defeats in 92 games played.
- Between 15 June 2008 and 11 October 2009, A Seleção went 19 games unbeaten.

What they said
"We have to learn to live with the favourites' tag. We mustn't let it turn into something negative, as it has done in previous years." Kaka, following the win over Argentina which clinched qualification.