Player Ratings: Denmark 2-2 Italy

Italy stole a point away to Denmark in a thrilling World Cup qualifier which effectively ended the Danes hopes of reaching the finals in Brazil.

Pablo Osvaldo put the Italians ahead in the first half but former Juventus forward Nicklas Bendtner scored a brace to leave Cesare Prandelli’s men on the brink of defeat.

However, a bizarrely deflected Alberto Aquilani goal in the dying seconds earned the Azzurri a point in the 2-2 draw.

Gianluigi Buffon – 5.5 – Shaky

Some question marks over his reaction speed for both the danish goals and his second half distribution was poor.  Not a good night for the Italy skipper.

Lorenzo De Silvestri – 5 – Nervous

The Sampdoria right back allowed the cross to come in for the Denmark equaliser all too easily and did not look at all relaxed.  On this performance, the defender is unlikely to make it to Brazil.

Federico Balzaretti – 5.5 – Subdued

Balzaretti was beaten by Bendtner in the air twice and did not look comfortable defending all evening.  Some of his trade mark galloping runs but nothing like the displays for his club side.

Giorgio Chiellini – 6.5 – Towering

The only Italian defender who is not in discussion.  Excellent tackling and did not put a foot wrong all night.  If only Prandelli had another one like him.

Andrea Ranocchia – 5.5 – Uneasy

Looked nervy all evening and his mistimed slide tackle which allowed Denmark to get their cross in for the second goal is unforgivable at this level.  Poor.

Thiago Motta – 7 – Vital

The perfect shield in front of the two central defenders, Motta recovered an incredible amount of possession for his side.  Superb pass for Osvaldo’s opener.

Claudio Marchisio – 5.5 – Indifferent

An excellent chance to score in the second half and plenty of energy but little end product.  Not the first time we are asking ourselves what the Juventus player is currently bringing to the Azzurri table.

Riccardo Montolivo – 6.5 – Quality

Played very well in deep areas, recovering the ball on numerous occasions and starting the attack wherever possible.  Still not the player we saw at Euro 2012, but not far off.

Antonio Candreva – 5.5 – Disheartening

Another hot and cold performance for the winger.  Always looks like he can be dangerous but too often made the wrong decision.  Tried to net from long range but was off the mark for much of the night.

Alessandro Diamanti – 5.5 – Insipid

Not many better left feet in world football than that of the Bologna forward, but Diamanti just could not get in the right positions to make any use of it.  Some interesting runs and the odd cross but we need more.  Maybe suffering his club side’s poor form of late.

Pablo Osvaldo – 7.5 – Decisive

Looked sharp for much of the game and the control and shot for his goal was a joy to watch.  Sometimes isolated but he kept fighting for every ball.  His injury time strike, deflected by Aquilani, saved Italy from defeat and proved there is life after Mario Balotelli.

Substitutes:

After 67 mins, Alberto Aquilani – 6.5
After 76 mins, Alessio Cerci – 5.5
After 81 mins, Alberto Gilardino – No Vote

Coach:

Cesare Prandelli -6.5

Despite his side’s indifferent performance, the coach has instilled a ‘never say die’ attitude which was evident in the last 10 minutes of the game as Italy fought back to pinch a draw.  The 4-3-2-1 formation was unconvincing and some of his players let him down tonight, especially in defence.

Still much work to be done.