Familiar foes face off

8220;Pavel is an annoying player to play against,8221; said Cannavaro, who plays alongside Nedved at Juventus. 8220;He has great spirit, sets an example to team mates, has real inner-strength and plays with passion. He is a genuine professional and a player to fear,8221; Cannavaro said.

Italy lead the group on four points with the Czechs, who need a win to be sure of going through, on three points along with Ghana.

Jankulovski, Nedved and suspended Fiorentina defender Tomas Ujfalusi have been feeding coach Karel Brueckner with information on the Italian players. 8220;The coach asked the three of us who play in Serie A advice about Marcello Lippi8217;s team and we provided him plenty of it,8221; said Jankulovski.

Match officials:

Referee: Benito Archundia MEX, Assistant Referees: Jose Ramirez MEX, Hector Vergara CAN, Fourth Official: Oscar Ruiz COL, Stand-by: Jose Navia COL.

Simon Evans