Soccer: World champions fearful of Kiwi giants

The sheer height of the All Whites attackers is enough to worry the world champion Italians. Photo / Brett Phibbs

Defender Winston Reid's leap for glory to score New Zealand's equaliser for a 1-1 soccer World Cup draw against Slovakia yesterday has defending champions Italy worried.

Reid ghosted into the Slovakian box to jump high and unchallenged, nodding home a Shane Smeltz cross in the dying seconds to seal a result that blew group F wide open.

Group favourites Italy and Paraguay also drew their opening match 1-1, leaving all four teams level on a point, with the same goal difference.

With New Zealand and Italy to play on Monday morning (NZT), Azurri centreback Giorgio Chiellini said today the world champions were worried about the aerial threat posed by the All Whites.

New Zealand have tall attackers in Rory Fallon (191cm), Shane Smeltz (184cm) and Chris Killen (188cm) who are boosted at the set pieces by towering defenders Ryan Nelsen (185cm), Tommy Smith (187cm) and Reid (190cm).

Chiellini is 192cm but skipper and fellow defender Fabio Cannavaro is just 175cm.

Fallon said the All Whites had already noted Italy struggled with crosses and long diagonal balls against Paraguay.

"We might be able to get into the game through that..." said Fallon whose headed goal against Bahrain in Wellington last year booked New Zealand their ticket to South Africa.

Chiellini told AFP Italy were preparing a bruising battle in Nelspruit after scraping to a come-from-behind 4-3 win over the All Whites in a friendly warm-up ahead of last year's Confederations Cup also in South Africa.

"They're very physical," he told AFP today.

"We played them in a friendly last year, they're very dangerous in the air and from set pieces."

Italy would have to deny the All Whites possession and keep the ball on the ground rather than playing long balls, he said.

"It won't be easy but with all the respect we owe our opponents, we should win. I don't even want to think about the possibility of a draw or something else."

Italy's first choice goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon will miss the match because a sciatic problem in his back has ruled him out for an unspecified time.

Chiellini said he and his fellow defenders had a responsibility to help make life as easy as possible for Buffon's replacement, Federico Marchetti.

- NZPA