Daniele De Rossi is not your typical footballer. The bruising Italian midfielder, 26, who scored the Azzurri's only goal in their disappointing 1-1 opening match with Paraguay on Monday, has played club football only for his hometown side, Roma. A hero of the curva, he sees himself as a fan on the field, a linchpin supporting the more renowned talents around him.
"I do everything for the fans because I am a fan myself," he said before the World Cup. "I see myself as an ultra (fanatical Italian football fan) on the field, someone who will do anything for the honour of wearing the badge." Asked about his earliest World Cup memories, he waxed lyrical. "The 1990 tournament in Italy," he said. "I was seven years old and very excited because the World Cup was coming to my country. I was young, but I felt like I knew everything.
"Toto Schillaci won the golden boot. Every time he touched the ball he scored. I was a big supporter of the national team and was very disappointed when they went out in the semi-finals. "But I also supported Germany because Rudi Voller played for them. He was my hero at Roma and we called him 'the flying German'. We used to sing 'Fly, German, fly'. I was very pleased for him when they won, though obviously I would have preferred Italy."
Asked if he remembered from the same World Cup England's Paul Gascoigne, who played for Lazio, Roma's city rivals, De Rossi's reaction underlined his credentials. "No, no, no," he said. "Gascoigne was Lazio! Good player, but Lazio." A World Cup winner four years ago, he listed bringing the trophy back to his hometown as the highlight of his life. "Imagine it," he said. "You are an Italian from Rome and you return to your home city with the World Cup. There were a million people ready to meet us and to celebrate. We travelled through them on an open-topped bus to the Circus Maximus (an ancient stadium in Rome). I smile just thinking about this."
That competition had a happy ending, but he missed most of the tournament after being sent off and banned for four games for elbowing the American striker Brian McBride. "I apologised because I was ashamed by my actions," he said. "I am a hard and passionate player, but a fair one." De Rossi wants to play a more prominent role this time, though he did score a penalty in the shoot-out in the last World Cup final.
"I remember the walk from the centre to the penalty spot, about 40 metres. It felt like one mile. I had so much responsibility. It's a thrill kicking penalties, though, and I like the responsibility. I scored and felt great joy in my heart." Asked about South Africa, De Rossi said: "We are the world champions, so expectations are high. Our aim is to retain the trophy by winning again, but we know it will be difficult. Having played in 2006 and now, I'm confident that we are just as strong.
"We are also used to playing as world champions and we are used to teams raising their level against us. That means that we always have to be competitive, which is good for us. I think it's a positive that everyone wants to beat us." Although unbeaten in their 10 qualifying games, nine of which De Rossi played in, Italy are not favourites in South Africa, even less so since their opening 1-1 draw with Paraguay in which De Rossi scored the equaliser.
The Italians do not care. They were not a popular choice to win in 2006 and still lifted the trophy in Berlin. Buoyed by picking up their first ever World Cup point against Slovakia and by the absence of Italy goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon, New Zealand's All Whites may dream of at least not losing to Italy tonight. De Rossi has other ideas. "There are teams that we should beat, we're better," De Rossi said. "We need to play our game and of course be careful. Losing to New Zealand would probably mean risking elimination, as has happened with France. We'd have a drastic position in the standings. It would be as serious as if New Zealand failed to get out the group stages at the rugby World Cup."
