Former Manchester United midfielder Paul Scholes has warned Roy Hodgson and England of the dangers that Italy’s Andrea Pirlo poses ahead of the World Cup.
The ex-England international was full of praise for the 35-year-old Juventus midfielder as the two nations prepare to square off in Manaus on June 14.
“Andrea Pirlo is the greatest playmaker in the world,” Scholes wrote in his blog for Paddy Power.
“Give him time on the ball and he will destroy you,” he continued.
The Englishman went on to say how he hopes Hodgson will have learned from his mistakes at Euro 2012 when they fell to the Azzurri, albeit through penalties.
“We paid nowhere near enough attention to him [at Euro 2012],
“Pirlo is not renowned for his athleticism but that day he ran 11.58km, more than any England player.
“He also had more passes (131) than England’s four starting midfielders.”
Having faced Pirlo at club level before, Scholes commented on how it is best to assign one player to the task of minimising the Italian’s time on the ball.
“Park Ji-Sung was the perfect man for Pirlo in 2010 and never gave him a kick.
“You could even see Pirlo getting frustrated and having little kicks out by the end.
“For Manaus, we need an ‘English Park Ji-Sung’, one England player designated to man-mark him,” he added.
Follow Conor Clancy on Twitter: @concalcio
