If Italy beats Ukraine in Friday's World Cup quarter-final match, "then anything can happen", according to Italy coach Marcello Lippi. Speaking to the press on the sidelines of Thursday's training session, Lippi said "we have not yet fulfilled our potential. What we need to do it focus on beating Ukraine. If we can do that there's not telling how far we'll go".
In Thursday's training session Lippi experimented with an attack which had Luca Toni and Filippo Inzaghi in front with Francesco Totti between but just behind them. The squad also spent time practicing penalty shot but goalie Gianluigi Buffon pleased with his teammates not to arrive at a shootout final in the Hamburg match against Ukraine.
"As a kid I dreamed about winning an important match in a final shootout. But after what happened in Manchester I don't want to know about that anymore," Buffon said. Buffon's team Juventus lost the 2003 Champions League final in Manchester against Serie A rivals AC Milan in a shootout after they drew in overtime.
Buffon also said that he closed his eyes when Totti scored the winning penalty against Australia earlier this week and that "if we end the next match in a shootout I won't watch what my teammates do, I don't think I could handle it".
