I WON’T FORGET MY HAMPDEN WINNER
CHRISTIAN PANUCCI EXCLUSIVE
CHRISTIAN PANUCCI EXCLUSIVE
IN another era Christian Panucci would have worn out the videotape. Alex McLeish and a generation of Scotland supporters are still waiting for the leap in technology that would enable them to erase the same footage from memory. A hammer blow that landed at the mid-point of Scotland’s two-decade wait for major tournament football, Panucci’s late, highly-contentious goal for Italy killed Scottish hopes of reaching Euro 2008.
It also effectively marked the end of McLeish’s first spell in charge of his country as Birmingham City lured him back to club football 10 days later.
How richly ironic it is, then, that the first competitive task of McLeish’s second reign as national coach sees him to go head-to-head with the man who broke Tartan Army hearts all those years ago.
Now manager of Albania, Panucci insists he has no recall of the controversy surrounding the free-kick awarded against Scotland full-back Alan Hutton late in the 2007 tie.
He does, however, vividly remember rising to meet Andrea Pirlo’s cross and wheeling away to celebrate a truly stellar moment in a career that saw him represent Real Madrid, Chelsea and both Milan clubs.
A fall-out with Marcello Lippi meant Panucci was absent from international football for three years and missed out on a place in Italy’s World Cup-winning squad of 2006.
The Scottish narrative casts Panucci as villain (and indeed ignores the suspicion of offside surrounding Barry Ferguson’s earlier equaliser) but the former defender recalls only redemption. To score such a landmark goal really did mean something special.
‘I still think about that goal against Scotland,’ he said. ‘It was the 92nd minute and the moment we qualified for the European Championships.
‘This meant a great deal to me and was very emotional because I had missed out on winning the 2006 World Cup. It is one of the big highlights from my career.
‘I have played this moment back 100 times — the cross from Andrea Pirlo and my header at the back post. I just hope my players give me a similar feeling on Monday.’
It was a cheerful and probably relieved Panucci who chatted to
The Mail on Sunday deep inside Albania’s Elbasan Arena on Friday evening in the wake of a 1-0 win over Israel in the opening League C, Group One fixture.
Had his team not prevailed he may well have been returning to Glasgow with his job on the line.
At loggerheads with supporters, the Albanian media and even the country’s former president, the 45-year-old approached the weekend in siege mode.
Results have not been impressive since he took over from compatriot Gianni de Biaisi in July of last year and, at Thursday’s pre-match press briefing, he faced some tough questioning regarding his future: ‘I am here to prepare the team — the president of the Albanian Football Federation will make that decision,’ he dead-panned.
The tension was only intensified by the massive intelligence and security operation around Friday night’s match. Armed police blockaded roads in the vicinity of the stadium while snipers were visible on the roofs of the arena and its surrounding buildings.
The show of force was a direct response to the events of November 2016 when a World Cup qualifier between the teams had to be relocated from Shkoder to Elbasan after the Israeli national team was the target of a failed Islamic State-inspired Balkan terror plot that extended into Kosovo and Macedonia.
Despite the intimidating backdrop, Friday’s game passed without incident and was indeed played in a low-key atmosphere, with the 13,000-seater stadium little more than half-full.
A crisp 25-yard strike from Taulant Xhaka, elder brother of Arsenal midfielder Granit, settled the game but it was an error-strewn affair which highlighted many of the flaws that have blighted Panucci’s time in charge.
Viewed as an ideal fit for a national team that enjoyed unprecedented success under De Biasi, Panucci’s brand of Italian coaching hasn’t gone down so well in Albania.
A sergeant-major type figure who earned his stripes under the notoriously stern Fabio Capello, Panucci has found goodwill in short supply.
‘He is a bit like a soldier,’ observes Sokol Xhihani, a journalist and commentator. ‘He doesn’t want to deal with the media and he is very strict with the players. We have been in a very difficult moment. We lost friendlies against Kosovo and Ukraine, losing seven goals and scoring only one.
‘Those matches fuelled a lot of rumours here in Albania, so for the players and the coach this is the time to prove something. For the coach it’s about whether he stays or goes. He is under pressure. He doesn’t want to accept it but he is.’
Whereas De Biasi was given the equivalent of an Albanian knighthood by the country’s then president Bujar Nishani after guiding the tiny Balkan nation to its first finals at Euro 2016, Panucci has taken the politician to court for calling him a ‘charlatan’. Panucci is seeking damages and on Thursday gave a ‘People should not be rude when talking about me’ comment on an issue that added unwanted distraction in the build-up to the Israel match. ‘It’s very different to when de Biaisi was in charge,’ continued Xhihani. ‘De Biasi was more Albanian in his outlook. Panucci is very Italian in the mould of Capello, who mentored him.
‘Capello was a strict coach with the players and he is the same. I think that is affecting the players.’
Had it not been for Thomas Strakosha, Albania’s jitteriness could have yielded a different opening result. The goalkeeper made some important stops to keep out the Israelis and was mightily relived when Eran Zahavi took the ball round him only to neglect to put it into the empty net before half-time.
Xhaka’s sweet first-timer settled the contest but it was his deep-lying midfield colleague Migjen Basha, who impressed most in a largely uninspiring performance against an even poorer Israel side.
The unconvincing nature of the win did nothing to quell Panucci’s celebrations. His fist-pumping
seeming like a release of pent-up frustration.
‘A lot of things have been said but I try not to think about it,’ he added. ‘I don’t feel so much pressure.’
A 4-0 defeat to Belgium on Friday night means McLeish is feeling some heat just a few months into the job.
Yet if he believes in omens, he may take encouragement from the venue chosen to host the return match on November 17.
Albania have a new national stadium under construction in Tirana but until that is completed the largest venue available to the Albanian authorities is in the northerly city of Shkoder.
While it’s true that Scotland and Albania have never before met in a men’s international match — Shelley Kerr’s women’s team blazed a trail in the Loro Birici Stadium last Tuesday, beating their hosts to qualify for the World Cup.
After such a heavy defeat, McLeish must seek inspiration from somewhere, although Panucci insists the loss to the World Cup semi-finalists is a red herring.
‘We know what will face us, a strong Scotland team and a passionate crowd,’ he said. ‘I am aware they lost to Belgium but that was a friendly — it will have no influence on the game we play.
‘We have made a good start to the Nations League but that does not mean it will be any less difficult for us in Glasgow. Scotland is always a difficult opponent, especially at Hampden Park. It is extraordinary to play in that stadium and to feel that kind of emotion.’
Before the SFA makes a final decision on whether to uproot headquarters to Murrayfield, the pro-Hampden lobby could do worse than set aside past grievances and haul Panucci into the boardroom before kick-off tomorrow night.
He would deliver quite the testimonial.