Italy coach Marcello Lippi is looking to start building on his World-Cup winning base in the Confederations Cup in South Africa against rivals like Spain and Brazil later this month.
''We have a year to grow,'' Lippi said ahead of Wednesday's pre-tournament friendly against New Zealand.
''In twelve months' time we will be a different team, stronger and more consistent''.
Germany 2006 champions Italy got their South Africa 2010 qualification campaign back on track over the winter but did not play pretty football, in most observers' eyes.
World Cup veterans like Fabio Cannavaro, Andrea Pirlo and Luca Toni have been questioned and will be looking to squash rivals' claims here.
A largely experimental team was hugely impressive in routing Northern Ireland 3-0 in Pisa at the weekend but only two members of that side, Inter Milan defender Davide Santon and Villarreal striker Giuseppe Rossi, are in the Confederations Cup squad.
However, pundits say other players like Lazio forward Pasquale Siviglia and Udinese midfielder Gaetano D'Agostino will have done themselves huge favours with an eye to the future.
One of Lippi's main ambitions in the tournament - FIFA's regular showcase of regional champions a year before the World Cup - will be to avenge a stinging 2-0 defeat to Brazil in London in February, where Lippi failed to set a new world undefeated record.
''Brazil is the strongest team in the world at the moment. Teams like Italy and Brazil are never in a competition just to take part,'' Lippi said.
Italy take on Kaka and Co. in their last Group B match on June 21.
Before that, they play the United States on June 15 and Egypt on June 18.
Asked what the most important match would be, Lippi said: ''The first one, against the USA''.
He will be expecting to go into the game against the much-improved Americans after a morale-boosting win over New Zealand, who as champions of Oceania are in the other Confederations Cup starting group, group A, along with South Africa, Iraq and European champions Spain.
Captain Cannavaro and AS Roma midfielder Daniele De Rossi missed Tuesday's training session and are expected to skip the New Zealand match.
Here is the Italy squad:
Goalkeepers: Gianluigi Buffon (Juventus), Marco Amelia (Palermo), Morgan de Sanctis (Galatasaray).
Defenders: Fabio Cannavaro (Juventus), Giorgio Chiellini (Juventus), Andrea Dossena (Liverpool), Alessandro Gamberini (Fiorentina), Fabio Grosso (Lyon), Nicolas Legrottaglie (Juventus), Davide Santon (Inter Milan), Gianluca Zambrotta (AC Milan).
Midfielders: Mauro Camoranesi (Juventus), Daniele De Rossi (AS Roma), Genaro Gattuso (AC Milan), Riccardo Montolivo (Fiorentina), Angelo Palombo (Sampdoria), Andrea Pirlo (AC Milan).
Forwards: Alberto Gilardino (Fiorentina), Vincenzo Iaquinta (Juventus), Simone Pepe (Udinese), Fabio Quagliarella (Napoli), Giuseppe Rossi (Villarreal), Luca Toni (Bayern Munich).
The Confederations Cup takes place each year in the World Cup host country a year before the World Cup.
It involves the current World Cup champion, the new host country, and the winners of each of the six FIFA confederation championships - the reigning African, Asian, European, Oceanian, South American and Concacaf (North and Central America and the Caribbean) champions.
In 2009, the teams are African champs Egypt, Asian champs Iraq, European champs Spain, Oceanian champs New Zealand, South American champs Brazil, Concacaf champs USA, 2006 World Cup winners Italy, and 2010 hosts South Africa.
