Fabio Cannavaro has gone from World Cup winner and world player of the year to an error-prone liability in just over 12 months.
That, at least, is the general view in Italy after the 33-year-old’s dwindling pace and rashness resulted in two goals during the country’s 3-1 friendly defeat by Hungary. He looked a completely different player from the rock who repelled almost everything in Germany last year.
But Real Madrid fans know that last season he was already a shadow of his former self, either because age was catching up with him or he had lost his full motivation having lifted the greatest prize in the game.
“Cannavaro last night was embarrassing and it was the same in Real’s game against Sevilla (in the Spanish Super Cup),” ema maimoon remarks on Italy’s Calcioblog.
Plenty of other players have lost their ability abruptly, of course. Former Manchester United midfielder Neil Webb went from England international to a postman earning 220 pounds a week in just five years (see a brief biog at the bubble burst) while Lee Sharpe’s career took such a downward spiral after he left Old Trafford that he ended up on the Celebrity Love Island gameshow.
Cannavaro said before the Hungary game that he would never retire form international football like Francesco Totti and Alessandro Nesta. If he carries on the way he is going, he might not have a choice.
Mark Meadows, Milan
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4 comments so far
Let’s face it, he was a bit overhyped even at the World Cup. He went pretty much unnoticed in the first few games, then, little by little, his “brilliance” became a talking point, whereas really it was just a case of not doing much wrong in what was a very defensive Italian team. It was received wisdom, a fallback position for journalists who believe in the “safety in numbers” principle of judging players, lost at sea because of Brazil doing badly and Argentina going out early. World player of the year? Absolutely ludicrous. Klose, Ribery and Grosso were all better at the World Cup; Ronaldinho and Deco had better claims over the course of the year.
- Posted by LondonThat’s not true, Cannavaro was a very strong contender in the world cup, his tackles were strong and very timely against players such as Klose, Podolski, and Henri; he controlled the team well alongside Buffon and was a very stable part of the defensive line that was everchanging during the world cup. During the season, his role in Juventus winning Lo Scudetto is overlooked by Juventus being punished for cheating, which is a shame because it was a very good season at that.
- Posted by danteHis performance now is lacking because he’s trying to adapt to a system which, in my opinion, is overly exhausting and opposite of what he’s used to. Now that he’s adapted, somewhat, to the offensive style of Spanish calcio, the switch to Italian calcio is unforgiving. On top of this, his performance during the Super Cup was equal to or better than the performance of his companion Pepe, which isn’t a compliment as the entire Madrid team was terrible that game. Cannavaro’s bad performances since the World Cup were the result of a change in tactics that saw the same stutters in brilliant players like Zambrotta, Thuram, and Emerson which can only be cured by a return to the Serie A.
He’s a true professional from my point of view. Some poor performances is normal. World cup winner and FIFA player of the year, your performance will always be watch by others closely. Some error here and there will get noticed although it’s not a big mistake and i still think cannavaro is good enough. Time will tell. To know more reason why i beg to differ check http://www.squaretan.com
- Posted by squaretanHow did he do at the weekend? Didn’t see the Atletico game myself. I am prepared to eat crow if that’s what’s required.
- Posted by London