Italy recorded a 2-0 victory over a battling Ghana side to get their World Cup Group E campaign off to a flying start in Hannover.
Ghana acquitted themselves well throughout, but Italy showed glimpses of real quality that suggest they could be a major force over the coming month.
Italian football has been rocked by match-fixing allegations in recent weeks, but the most scandalous feature of the first half was the erratic form of Ghana goalkeeper Richard Kingston.
The Azzurri quickly sussed the weakness of their West African rivals and peppered the Ghana goalmouth with crosses. Kingston continually came out looking to punch, but invariably missed his mark.
The first significant chance came when a break down the right wing squirmed through to Luca Toni and then Alberto Gilardino, whose scuffed shot went wide via keeper and post.
Ghana were far from intimidated in the early stages though, and set a fast tempo to the game which Italy seemed reluctant to match.
The renowned Italian defence looked rattled as The Black Stars fearlessly rushed forward whenever they stole possession, with Michael Essien and Stephen Appiah particularly impressive.
Ghana's sheer pace and athleticism got them into some promising positions, but they lacked composure when well set.
Asamoah Gyan had Gianluigi Buffon scrambling with a bouncing shot which flew narrowly wide, while Essien also sliced wide after another flowing counter-attack.
Emmanuel Pappoe was a constant threat down the left, but when presented with a fantastic opportunity to open the scoring he blazed horribly over, unaware of the time and space he had.
Italy gradually weathered the storm and gained the initiative through some adventurous play of their own.
Toni struck the crossbar with an unstoppable drive, before Francesco Totti stung the palms of Kingston with an even more ferocious effort from all of 40 yards.
After 40 minutes Andrea Pirlo broke the deadlock, finding the bottom corner with a swerving shot from outside the area after Totti had cleverly cut a corner back to him.
Italy almost doubled their advantage moments into the second half, when Totti released Gilardino with a beautifully weighted pass. The striker dwelt too long on the ball though, and his shot was smothered by the onrushing Kingston.
The urgency appeared to be going out of the Ghanaian play, and they were clearly suffering from their first half exertions as Marcelo Lippi's side closed in on a second.
Kingston made up for his earlier eccentricity to brilliantly deny Simone Perrotta's close-range shot, but the Ghana defence was stretched time and again as Italy seized control of the midfield battleground.
However, old habits die hard and, after Totti's worrying withdrawal for injury, The Azzurri allowed Ghana back into the game by sitting on their one-goal cushion and inviting their opponents to attack.
Essien tested Buffon's reflexes with a crashing strike from outside the area, and there was a desperate appeal for a penalty by Gyan after a surging run into the box.
Ghana remained vulnerable at the back, and substitute Vincenzo Iaquinta wrapped up the three points seven minutes from time to give Italy some breathing space late on.
Iaquinta was in ruthless mood when he pounced on a terrible Samuel Kuffour pass and rounded Kingston to seal a morale-boosting victory.
In a tough group Italy still have some work to do to qualify for the knock-out rounds, but they will have been heartened by their performance and confident that they can do some damage in this tournament.
Ghana acquitted themselves well throughout, but Italy showed glimpses of real quality that suggest they could be a major force over the coming month.
Italian football has been rocked by match-fixing allegations in recent weeks, but the most scandalous feature of the first half was the erratic form of Ghana goalkeeper Richard Kingston.
The Azzurri quickly sussed the weakness of their West African rivals and peppered the Ghana goalmouth with crosses. Kingston continually came out looking to punch, but invariably missed his mark.
The first significant chance came when a break down the right wing squirmed through to Luca Toni and then Alberto Gilardino, whose scuffed shot went wide via keeper and post.
Ghana were far from intimidated in the early stages though, and set a fast tempo to the game which Italy seemed reluctant to match.
The renowned Italian defence looked rattled as The Black Stars fearlessly rushed forward whenever they stole possession, with Michael Essien and Stephen Appiah particularly impressive.
Ghana's sheer pace and athleticism got them into some promising positions, but they lacked composure when well set.
Asamoah Gyan had Gianluigi Buffon scrambling with a bouncing shot which flew narrowly wide, while Essien also sliced wide after another flowing counter-attack.
Emmanuel Pappoe was a constant threat down the left, but when presented with a fantastic opportunity to open the scoring he blazed horribly over, unaware of the time and space he had.
Italy gradually weathered the storm and gained the initiative through some adventurous play of their own.
Toni struck the crossbar with an unstoppable drive, before Francesco Totti stung the palms of Kingston with an even more ferocious effort from all of 40 yards.
After 40 minutes Andrea Pirlo broke the deadlock, finding the bottom corner with a swerving shot from outside the area after Totti had cleverly cut a corner back to him.
Italy almost doubled their advantage moments into the second half, when Totti released Gilardino with a beautifully weighted pass. The striker dwelt too long on the ball though, and his shot was smothered by the onrushing Kingston.
The urgency appeared to be going out of the Ghanaian play, and they were clearly suffering from their first half exertions as Marcelo Lippi's side closed in on a second.
Kingston made up for his earlier eccentricity to brilliantly deny Simone Perrotta's close-range shot, but the Ghana defence was stretched time and again as Italy seized control of the midfield battleground.
However, old habits die hard and, after Totti's worrying withdrawal for injury, The Azzurri allowed Ghana back into the game by sitting on their one-goal cushion and inviting their opponents to attack.
Essien tested Buffon's reflexes with a crashing strike from outside the area, and there was a desperate appeal for a penalty by Gyan after a surging run into the box.
Ghana remained vulnerable at the back, and substitute Vincenzo Iaquinta wrapped up the three points seven minutes from time to give Italy some breathing space late on.
Iaquinta was in ruthless mood when he pounced on a terrible Samuel Kuffour pass and rounded Kingston to seal a morale-boosting victory.
In a tough group Italy still have some work to do to qualify for the knock-out rounds, but they will have been heartened by their performance and confident that they can do some damage in this tournament.
