FORTALEZA, Brazil - Italy has defined a clear-cut strategy for its Confederations Cup semifinal match against Spain on Thursday: Out-run the World Cup holders. Wholesale Jerseys From China . As far as Italy coach Cesare Prandelli is concerned, matching Spains ball possession or passing skills is impossible. So in training Monday, running took priority over tactics. The Italian players — at least the ones that are still healthy after a series of injuries — sprinted from one end of the field to the other at full speed about 10 times consecutively at one point, then stopped to have their heart rates checked by team trainers. "Weve got to get it into our heads that against Spain its going to be a battle of suffering," Italy coach Cesare Prandelli said. "Their ball possession is superior to ours and the Spanish are unbelievable at getting past any sort of trap set up by the opponents. Theyre excellent at holding on to the ball and attacking so weve got to try to make them run as much as possible." Prandelli may be on to something with his strategy but it remains to be seen if his players have the stamina to execute such a plan. Japan and Brazil ran circles around Italy in the first half of their group matches and two key Azzurri players have been sent home injured since the 4-2 loss to Brazil — forward Mario Balotelli left with a strained left thigh and fullback Ignazio Abate departed with a dislocated right shoulder. Also, midfielder Andrea Pirlo sat out the Brazil match due to a muscle problem and has continued to train separately from the rest of the squad. Daniele De Rossi, another midfielder, missed the Brazil game after picking up two yellow cards. Not surprisingly, De Rossi appeared among the freshest players in training, and he and Emanuele Giaccherini were the two fastest runners in the training exercise. But running may not be enough against Spain, which routed Italy 4-0 in last years European Championship final. "Spain is much better off than then, if you consider how easily they advanced from the group and how solid they have been," Prandelli said. "They are the favourites without a doubt." Including its 10-0 win over Tahiti, Spain outscored the opposition 15-1 in the first round. Italy, by contrast, scored eight goals and let in eight in the group phase. Still, Prandelli does not seem concerned by his defence, even after attending Spains 3-0 win over Nigeria on Sunday. "The Nigerians created four scoring chances. In every match youre going to have four scoring chances but youve got to create at least six or seven, thats the future of football," Prandelli said. "We cant use the Italian league as a model anymore." Italy opened Euro 2012 by drawing 1-1 with Spain and midfielder Claudio Marchisio said the Azzurri were using that match more as a reference point for this game. "Not just for the result but for the way we approached that match," Marchisio said. "If we play that way we can create problems for them." The 1-1 draw with Spain also marked the first time Italy used a three-man defence and it appears the Azzurri will go back to that type of lineup for this game, allowing Prandelli to add an extra midfielder. "Looking back a year later that was the better formation," Marchisio said. This tournament is a test for next years World Cup, and Prandelli wants to return to Brazil in 2014 with "23 athletes, not just players" to better deal with the heat and humidity. "And well need to give them time to prepare," he said. "If you arrive with the fuel tank empty everything becomes more difficult." Against Spain, Alberto Gilardino will likely replace Balotelli at centre forward. "We have to try and create situations where we outnumber the opponent," Prandelli said. "I want to see Italy play like we played the second half against Brazil — courageously and attacking." NFL Jerseys For Sale . - Because they didnt go into Beast Mode, the Seattle Seahawks found themselves in Spin Mode. Cheap NBA Jerseys China .m. ET, CBSOPENING LINE — Packers by 3RECORD VS. SPREAD — New England 7-4, Green Bay 5-5-1SERIES RECORD — Tied 5-5. http://www.wholesalechinajerseysforcheap.com/ . "Today was a very great day for me. It was always my dream to be good in GS," Wierather said. "I took quite a long time to get there. It feels awesome to have my first win (in GS)." Wierather leads overall with 595 points from Lara Gut (568), who finished second, and Maria Hoefl-Riesch of Germany (535).CALGARY -- Pittsburgh was held to two goals on Saturday night but, against a struggling Calgary offence that set a record for being shutout at home, it was enough. Marc-Andre Fleury made 27 saves to backstop the Penguins to a 2-1 victory over the Flames, handing Calgary its team record sixth consecutive home regulation loss. "It was just nice today, to have a close, low scoring game," said Fleury, who improved to 26-10-1. "It felt nice. The last few games were a little crazy so its definitely nice and it was a good battle." It looked for the longest time like Fleury was going to become the sixth goaltender in the last eight games to shut out the Flames before Mikael Backlund cut into a 2-0 deficit with a goal with 8:31 left in the third period. "Its a relief. Its hard when you chase and chase and you get scoring chances and the puck doesnt go in," Backlund said. "It gets in your head a little bit. It shouldnt but its natural. But as soon as you score one, everybody settles down a little bit and you feel better." Ending a goalless stretch at the Scotiabank Saddledome at a team record 196 minutes 59 seconds, Backlund outbattled Kris Letang for the puck and scored on a wicked slapshot from 40 feet out. "Obviously it was nice to get a goal since we havent had too many at home here, lately, but were very disappointed that we didnt win the game," Backlund said. Chris Kunitz and Matt Niskanen scored for Pittsburgh (33-12-2). The Penguins pick up five-of-six points on its three-game road trip that included a win in Vancouver and an overtime loss in Edmonton on Friday. "The Western Canada swing, its always a hype-up for these games," said Pittsburgh coach Dan Bylsma. "With Sidney in the building, it seems like we get the best from other teams." Calgary (15-24-6) is next in action Monday in Carolina as they begin a short two-game road trip that sees them also play Tuesday in Nashville. "On the mental side, its good but its another loss," said Flames coach Bob Hartley, relieved that his team scored but not pleased with the end result. "But I cant fault the effort. Tonight was by far one of our best games lately." After the Backlund goal, with the roaring sell-out crowd of 19,289 suddenly back in the game and momentum seemingly on their side, Calgary could not get the tying goal as Pittsburgh didnt give the Flames much to work with. That was different than how Fridays loss played out in Edmonton when the Penguins blew a third-perriod lead and lost in overtime. Cheap Jerseys USA. "After a disappointing third period for us last night, for us it was a much better team game," said Niskanen. "We got the 2-0 lead, same situation we were in last night and thats something we want to get better at, playing with the lead." Pittsburgh took a 1-0 lead at 16:34 of the first period on a laser of a shot from Kunitz that beat Reto Berra over his shoulder and just under the cross bar. The Penguins made it 2-0 at 6:42 of the second when Niskanens shot through a crowd in front squeaked through the pads of Berra. The Flames 27-year-old goaltender had 24 saves including two stellar stops against Sidney Crosby less than 30 seconds apart in the first period. With the game scoreless, first Crosby broke in from off the left wing but had his snap shot smothered. Later that shift, Kunitzs pass sprung Crosby on a breakaway from the blue-line but again Berra showed good reflexes in stopping the close wrist shot. Crosby also hit a goal post in seeing his seven-game points streak snapped. Down 2-0 seven minutes into the third period, the Flames had a chance to try to get the game back to even when they got a five-minute power play after Pittsburgh defenceman Robert Bortuzzo was given a match penalty for head contact for a heavy hit along the side boards on Calgary captain Mark Giordano. But the Flames could not click on the major, which was cut short when Mike Cammalleri took a cross-checking penalty during it. Calgary is now 1 for 26 with the man advantage in the last eight games. "If we could have scored a couple power-play goals, we could have won the game. That was the difference," Backlund said. "We had a few power-play opportunities and we didnt score and its been like that for a while and its been costing us some games." Notes: The old mark for Calgarys regulation losses at home was five, which happened in March 2000 ... Calgary has scored just 12 goals in Berras last 11 starts. ... Backlunds goal ended the Flames overall shutout streak at 174:59, short of the team record of 182:42 set in November 2002 ... Calgary RW David Jones (eye) missed his fourth game ... C Joe Vitale (upper body) did not play for Pittsburgh ... Pittsburgh lost centre Brian Gibbons to a lower-body injury in the first period ... Pittsburgh has won seven games in a row against the Flames including the last four at the Scotiabank Saddledome ... The Penguins improved to 10-2-1 against the West. Calgary is 7-8-4 against the East. ' ' '