The latest Italy squad has a touch of the Donadonis about it. It is totally and utterly unremarkable. Form players have been left out while tried, tested, dried up old fruits have found their way into selection. Again.

The most startling is, of course, the Azzurri's decline in production of defensive talent. There just aren't the stars available there once were and there is little sign of any emerging in time for the 2010 World Cup in South Africa.

That is, of course, besides Fabiano Santacroce. It would not be an exaggeration to suggest that the Brazil native established himself as one of the best defenders in Italy when he had only just turned 21, still playing for Brescia.

He is now very much at home in a Napoli side eager to bring back the glory days; he's still only 22, has grown immensely popular with the fans, yet was inexplicably overlooked for selection. Instead, Marcello Lippi has called on the likes of Andrea Dossena and Daniele Bonera, both of whom have been average at best for Liverpool and AC Milan respectively.

At the other end of the pitch, the Azzurri's curse of an abundance of 'good' strikers but a severe lack of 'greats' has continued. In this instance, Lippi's failing has been not giving the form players a chance. Vincenzo Iaquinta, who at best, slips in and out of the Juventus team, has made the squad, as has Simone Pepe, who is also struggling to get a string of starts at Udinese.

Omitted, inexplicably, is Sergio Floccari. The 27-year-old late *la*hmer remains uncapped, but is undisputedly one of the form strikers in Serie A. Antonio Cassano has been left behind as well, possibly for reasons other than a lack of quality - but is it for the best? Italy need a bit of magic, and few forwards provide that quite like 'Il Talentino'.

Could it not be seen as a failing of the great Lippi that he will not even try to man manage the fiery forward and instead simply neglect such an incredible talent? The likes of Fernando Redondo and Eric Cantona are not viewed as legends of the game because they never made a mark on the international stage, but football should always come first, shouldn't it? Or are we asking too much?

If Italy avoid defeat tonight, Lippi will have set a new world record for games unbeaten as an international manager - but closer analysis shows that of the 31 games unbeaten so far, a massive 13 of them have been draws - and many were draws against very, very average teams.

This record doesn't hold the same resonance as Spain's current streak, which should tell Lippi and Italy all they need to know about the work they need to do to get back to the top - or even come close. There are less than 18 months between now and the beginning of the showpiece in South Africa. Time will fly between now and then; Lippi needs to inject some energy and inspiration into his selection, and soon.

For this re-marriage to have a happy ending, the Italy team needs the perfect balance. Think of it as a wedding dress: Lippi is something old, but he's in desperate need of something new. Amauri must be the something borrowed, and the shirt, of course, is Azzurri blue.