Before the match, some media outlets joked that Italy was playing an 8-0-2 formation: eight men on defense with two forwards wandering up front, relying entirely on Vieri's individual skill to score.
But with no one in the midfield to feed them the ball, the wings couldn't get any attacks going either.
The stubborn Trapattoni was also unwilling to change the formation.
These were all weaknesses of the Italy Team, but their lineup was so star-studded that these so-called flaws were perhaps just nitpicking, minor imperfections at best.
In this match, however, their star-studded lineup had been completely unable to break through Scolari's wild 5-4-1 formation.
Baggio had the ball up front. When Italy attacked, their midfield didn't push forward enough, creating a disconnect between them and the strikers. This made Baggio feel like Batty—he'd look up and see nothing but Brazil Team players in front of him.
