His coach may not believe he has even an hour in his legs, but Antonio Cassano may make the difference between Italy returning from Ukraine as heroes or nearly men on Monday.
Cesare Prandelli has started his star forward in every single game and told him to run until he dropped, after which he made way for fresher legs.
Against Germany in the 2-1 semi-final victory, he did exactly that.
"It was Antonio's best match in terms of intensity and tempo. He ran, he fought, he realised he could be important even though he only had 50 minutes in his legs," said Prandelli.
"But it was 50 minutes of great quality."
Cassano it was who found Mario Balotelli six yards out with a pinpoint cross from his weaker left foot to give Italy a 1-0 lead, a position Italians are expert at defending.
Source: AFP
