2010 Italy Away – Andrea Pirlo #21 L

The 2010 World Cup was a bitter disappointment for Italy, the defending champions, and a tournament that Andrea Pirlo barely featured in due to injury. Despite wearing the iconic #21 shirt, Pirlo missed the first two matches and only appeared briefly in the final group game. Without him orchestrating the midfield, Italy lacked creativity and were eliminated in the group stage.

🇿🇦 Italy at the 2010 FIFA World Cup (Group F)

• ⚖️ 1–1 vs Paraguay

• ⚖️ 1–1 vs New Zealand

• ❌ 2–3 vs Slovakia
  ➡️ Eliminated in the Group Stage (4th place with 2 points)

⚽ Andrea Pirlo’s Role

• Position: Deep-lying playmaker (Regista)

• Matches Played: 1 (vs Slovakia)

• Minutes Played: 34 (came on as substitute)

• Goals/Assists: 0

• Impact: Italy’s attack struggled in his absence; his late cameo showed glimpses of what they missed

Pirlo entered the tournament carrying a calf injury, and his limited availability significantly weakened Italy’s midfield control. His absence was widely considered a key factor in the team’s early exit.

🇮🇹 Italy 2010 World Cup Squad

Coach: Marcello Lippi

Goalkeepers

• Gianluigi Buffon (#1)

• Federico Marchetti (#12)

• Morgan De Sanctis (#14)

Defenders

• Fabio Cannavaro (#5 – Captain)

• Giorgio Chiellini (#4)

• Gianluca Zambrotta (#19)

• Domenico Criscito (#3)

• Leonardo Bonucci (#15)

• Christian Maggio (#2)

• Salvatore Bocchetti (#23)

Midfielders

• Andrea Pirlo (#21)

• Daniele De Rossi (#6)

• Claudio Marchisio (#8)

• Riccardo Montolivo (#16)

• Gennaro Gattuso (#17)

• Angelo Palombo (#13)

• Simone Pepe (#7)

Forwards

• Antonio Di Natale (#11)

• Alberto Gilardino (#9)

• Vincenzo Iaquinta (#15)

• Fabio Quagliarella (#18)

• Giampaolo Pazzini (#20)