Kaladze nightmare hands Italy crucial victory

AC Milan defender Kakha Kaladze suffered a nightmare match, scoring two own-goals as Italy beat Georgia 2-0 in a group eight World Cup qualifier here on Saturday.

Italy started with five present and three former Juventus players in their side but it was one from Milan who proved decisive in a disastrous manner.

The Georgia captain twice fluffed attempted clearances into his own net in the second half to hand the country where he plies his club trade a welcome boost in their hopes of reaching South Africa.

Italy stay top of group eight with a game in hand over Republic of Ireland while Georgia remain bottom.

In a scrappy first period there were little more than half chances created with the first going to Vincenzo Iaquinta who had been played in behind the defence only to lose his footing.

Giuseppe Rossi then picked out Mauro Camoranesi in the area but the diminutive Juventus winger couldn’t keep his header down.

Iaquinta then tried to release Villarreal’s Rossi but goalkeeper Giorgi Lomaia charged from his line to hack the ball clear before the American-born striker could reach it.

Georgia posed almost no threat while Italy also struggled to trouble Lomaia as Giorgio Chiellini headed an Andrea Pirlo corner wide.

Genoa left-back Domenico Criscito, one of the former Juve players, waltzed into the area late in the first half before going down but the referee waved away any penalty appeals.

Criscito, making only his second appearance and first in a competitive match, seemed to have lost the ball and went to ground rather easily under minimal contact.

Georgia started the second half brightly, creating a couple of nervous moments in the Italy defence before Kaladze’s gifts changed the momentum.

Sampdoria midfielder Angelo Palombo, deputising for the suspended Daniele De Rossi, played a hopeful ball forward in search of Iaquinta but centre-back Kaladze headed the ball into the top corner of his own net from six yards, leaving Lomaia wrong-footed on 56 minutes.

Moments later Italy’s substitutes Gaetano D’Agostino and Fabio Quagliarella combined with the latter shooting just wide of the far post.

However, on 67 minutes Kaladze did it again as Criscito crossed into the box looking for Iaquinta, the Milan defender shanked his right foot clearance past a bewildered Lomaia.

Criscito almost made it a hat-trick of own goals five minutes from time of a bizarre night of football as his shank forced Gianluigi Buffon into a diving one-handed save.

Italy could well have increased their lead as they hit the post three times within a second deep into injury time.

Quagliarella’s close range header hit the upright, came off the diving Lomaia and back onto the upright before running across goal where Iaquinta smacked it onto the outside of the post and behind for a goal-kick.