Italy's defeated footballers arrived back on home soil on Thursday still lamenting their shock departure from the World Cup and the poor refereeing they say was to blame for their early exit. A crowd of a few hundred, most of whom were wearing the “Azzurri” strip, welcomed the squad back at Milan’s main airport. One supporter carried a banner which read: “True soccer is played in Italy”. “We have to thank the fans for the enthusiasm they’ve shown and the good vision they’ve had to see what really happened out there,” coach Giovanni Trapattoni told reporters, referring to the number of refereeing decisions which went against Italy. Earlier in the tournament, Italy had a further four goals disallowed in three games, despite evidence from video replays indicating that the linesmen may have called incorrectly. The Italian media has since accused soccer’s ruling body FIFA of orchestrating their team’s World Cup exit, hinting that “hidden powers” were brought to bare on Ecuadorean referee Byron Moreno to favour co-hosts South Korea in the decisive game. Most of Italy’s squad, which includes some of the most expensive players in the world, preferred not to talk on Thursday, but midfielder Gianluca Zambrotta kept up the fingerpointing. FIFA president Sepp Blatter, speaking to the La Gazzetta Dello Sport, criticised some of the refereeing, but said Italy should stop moaning. He also said: “Italy’s elimination is not only down to referees and linesmen.Italy made mistakes, both in defence and in attack. (Reuters)
