Marcello Lippi can now focus on training the Italian national team. Or, at least, try to, considering the circumstances in which Italian football finds itself. After the 3 hour interrogatory on Friday, the former Juve coach received the go-ahead from the Italian Football Federation officials. Its new president, Guido Rossi, said that Lippi is in no way implicated in the latest corruption scandal, and can consider his place on the bench a sure thing.

More, Marcello Lippi set up a press conference with the Italian media, since he wanted to make himself heard about why he refused to quit the national team job, despite several such requests from Serie A presidents: "I won't resign because my conscience is clear. After eight years of working together, it is absolutely normal that he (Moggi) is calling me. If they had intercepted all the calls I have had you would see that it was not only Juventus directors who called me. I get calls from all the clubs but I have never had any kind of pressure [in mind] when selecting my team members".

As the Italy national football team is concerned, the players are 100% behind their technician. Luca Toni, the Serie A top-scorer, said that: "I talked to the rest of the team and everybody is behind Lippi. Everyone who is found guilty in this scandal must pay, but Lippi is not one of them".

But not all of the Italy's players are out of danger. One of their top goalies, Gianluigi Buffon, had a private meeting with one of the magistrates, in which he answered to the accusation of betting on suspicious Juventus matches. He issued a declaration to the media, saying that: "It's true I used to bet on football matches, but that stopped once it was forbidden by the FIGC".

With the FIFA World Cup approaching, more and more problems seem to influence the national team. But that fact does not bring any concern towards the players, who are convinced that the events from 1982 - when Italy won the World Cup after a betting scandal in the Italian football - will be repeated.