Amauri, the Juventus forward, will be aiming to show the controversy surrounding his international future has not deprived him of his eye for goal in the Italian Cup semi-final first leg at Lazio tonight.
The Brazilian, 28, was in lethal form in the first half of the season, but has only scored once in 2009, leading to speculation that controversy over whether he should play for Italy or Brazil is proving a distraction.
He is applying for an Italian passport and would be eligible to play for the world champions as he has never represented his homeland.
The Juventus coach Claudio Ranieri is confident the question is not affecting the player, who should partner Vincenzo Iaquinta tonight.
"It might be something he thinks about in his free time, but on the field he is the same as always," he said.
"He isn't distracted. This player has fought all his life to get where he is at Juventus."
Inter Milan head to Sampdoria tomorrow in the other semi-final, with the return legs for both ties due to be played next month.
* Reuters
Why it pays to compare
A comparison of sending Dh20,000 from the UAE using two different routes at the same time - the first direct from a UAE bank to a bank in Germany, and the second from the same UAE bank via an online platform to Germany - found key differences in cost and speed. The transfers were both initiated on January 30.
Route 1: bank transfer
The UAE bank charged Dh152.25 for the Dh20,000 transfer. On top of that, their exchange rate margin added a difference of around Dh415, compared with the mid-market rate.
Total cost: Dh567.25 - around 2.9 per cent of the total amount
Total received: €4,670.30
Route 2: online platform
The UAE bank’s charge for sending Dh20,000 to a UK dirham-denominated account was Dh2.10. The exchange rate margin cost was Dh60, plus a Dh12 fee.
Total cost: Dh74.10, around 0.4 per cent of the transaction
Total received: €4,756
The UAE bank transfer was far quicker – around two to three working days, while the online platform took around four to five days, but was considerably cheaper. In the online platform transfer, the funds were also exposed to currency risk during the period it took for them to arrive.
