Totti, Toni left off Lippi's World Cup squad (Roundup)

May 11, 2010, 16:10 GMT

Rome - Italy coach Marcello Lippi had no place for Francesco Totti or Luca Toni in his preliminary 30-strong World Cup squad on Tuesday.

Juventus defender Nicola Legrottaglie was also left out but striker Giuseppe Rossi from Spanish side Villarreal, who missed last week's training camp in Rome, rejoined after a long absence.

Roma captain Totti retired from the national team after helping Italy win the 2006 World Cup, but there had been speculation that he could return.

Toni, who had led Italy's attack in 2006 and at Euro 2008, had joined Roma to help his World Cup chances after losing his place in the Bayern Munich side.

Legrottaglie, commenting on his omission, said: 'He (Lippi) called me and I thanked him for these two years. He gave me his explanations, but I replied that he didn't have to.'

By June 1, Lippi is due to present to the ruling body FIFA an official list of 23 players for the World Cup.

Goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon and captain Fabio Cannavaro lead a defence package that also welcomed young Domenico Criscito and Salvatore Bocchetti from Genoa and Leonardo Bonucci from promoted Bari.

Gennaro Gattuso and Andrea Pirlo of AC Milan and Roma's Daniele De Rossi are confirmed as midfield mainstays, while Antonio Di Natale of Udinese is by far the best striker with 28 goals to his name with one game left in the Italian Serie A.

As Lippi is expected to take six strikers to South Africa, one is likely to be left home among Marco Borriello, Alberto Gilardino, Vincenzo Iaquinta, Giampaolo Pazzini, Fabio Quagliarella and Rossi.

The web site of the Italian football federation (FIGC) earlier had quoted Lippi as saying that the absence of Roma captain Francesco Totti was not to be related to the harsh foul the striker committed last week during the Italian Cup final his side lost 1-0 against Inter Milan.

Lippi said he was not worried about the poor season of Juventus, who provided eight players.

'I would be more worried if the players came from fantastic seasons, if they all had been protagonists and had clinched all their goals,' he said.

'Not only I'm not worried, I prefer that it went like this. It's notorious that human beings do their best when they come from difficulties.'

Lippi has scheduled a camp from May 23 to June 4 at the mountain resort of Sestriere, in Italy's north-western Alps.

Italy will play friendlies against Mexico in Brussels on June 3 and at Switzerland on June 5.

'Italy's showing at the Confederations Cup (last year in South Africa) was rather unfortunate also due to the (high-altitude) environment,' Lippi said.

'So we thought it would have been important to have a period of training in altitude. We thought about Sestriere, which (has) one of the few football pitches at 2,000 metres.'

The Azzurri's debut in South Africa is set for June 14 against Paraguay before Group F games with New Zealand and Slovakia on June 20 and 24.

Squad Goalkeepers Gianluigi Buffon (Juventus), Morgan De Sanctis (Napoli), Federico Marchetti (Cagliari), Salvatore Sirigu (Palermo).

Defenders Salvatore Bocchetti (Genoa), Leonardo Bonucci (Bari), Fabio Cannavaro (Juventus), Mattia Cassani (Palermo), Giorgio Chiellini (Juventus), Domenico Criscito (Genoa), Fabio Grosso (Juventus), Christian Maggio (Napoli), Gianluca Zambrotta (AC Milan).

Midfielders Mauro Camoranesi (Juventus), Antonio Candreva (Juventus), Andrea Cossu (Cagliari), Daniele De Rossi (Roma), Gennaro Gattuso (AC Milan), Claudio Marchisio (Juventus), Riccardo Montolivo (Fiorentina), Angelo Palombo (Sampdoria), Simone Pepe (Udinese), Andrea Pirlo (AC Milan).

Forwards: Marco Borriello (Milan), Antonio Di Natale (Udinese), Alberto Gilardino (Fiorentina), Vincenzo Iaquinta (Juventus), Giampaolo Pazzini (Sampdoria), Fabio Quagliarella (Napoli), Giuseppe Rossi (Villarreal).