TEAMtalk's Peter Hall feels Italy's latest match-fixing maelstrom is far worse than the choppy waters experienced by England before Euro 2012.

We always seem to think the world is against us in England.

In the fall-out from any major tournament in which we underperform, the excuses come thick and fast. Some always say our preparation wasn't good enough, others simply claim 'we were robbed'.

This time around, it seems everyone is already writing off any chance of England clinching their first-ever European Championship crown, after Frank Lampard became the latest player to join the list of crocked stars.

However, spare a thought for any Italy supporters who will be making the journey north to Poland in the coming days. I don't think anything else could have possibly gone wrong for the Azzurri as they approach the tournament.

This latest match-fixing scandal is not only ill-timed, but has heaped more distrust on a nation that has been slowly but surely trying to re-build their battered reputation.

Investigations are still on-going, and nothing has been proven, but even leading figures in government have been expressing their concerns regarding the perennial scourge of Italian football.

Italy's Prime Minister, Mario Monti, got involved this week, claiming that there should be a long break in the country's football schedule, in order to sort out the deep-rooted problems.

All of this was then followed by a humiliating 3-0 defeat to Russia in Zurich on Friday night. The situation back home may have had an effect on the lacklustre Italians, as they never really got going, and looked as though they were there in body, but were far from being present in mind.

With the Euros just a week away, this must be the worst kind of preparation.

Yet, as we always do, us England fans are cursing our incessant misfortune, and already drawing up a list of excuses for the envisaged early exit in Poland and Ukraine.

At the end of a long, hard Premier League season, there are always going to to be injuries. There hasn't been any dreaded metatarsal saga this time around, but we've found other injury dilemmas to dwell on instead.

Imagine the anarchy here in England if the turmoil of alleged corruption which the Italians have had to endure whilst preparing for Euro 2012 had happened on our shores. It puts our cries for a turnaround in luck in perspective.

I'm not debating the fact that injuries have hampered Roy Hodgson's preparations immensely, and our squad reshuffle is a huge concern only one week before the start of the Euros.

However, nobody has it all their own way, and this new wave of realism for the Three Lions may well create a more positive attitude among our fanatical followers.

As for the Azzurri, they always go into any major championships as one of the favourites, due to the abundance of talent at their disposal, and despite their tribulations in the run-up to this year's spectacle in Poland and Ukraine, they do so again.

This time out, England are not among the fancied nations to go all the way, but still have a squad capable of springing a suprise, even without key injured stars.

I've been downbeat this week as a result of these untimely squad withdrawals, but looking at what the poor old Italians have had to endure, I've changed my attitude completely.

Let's not focus on who is missing, or who could have been in the squad. Instead, let's get behind who is flying out to eastern Europe, and support the players that are actually going to make a difference.

If all else fails, and come next Monday, when we open our campaign against France, you're still downcast, and considering not even watching any more of the action, just think: you could be Italian.

You can follow Pete on Twitter at @pistolpeteh86.