Listen, my father is from Italy and I wish the Azzuri well and hope they are successful (if Canada is not playing) but Italy is more or less the New Jersey Devils of soccer. Boring can be very successful if your players are disciplined and well coached. Italy has discipline and strong coaching coming out their arse. So, yes, they are one of the most successful soccer nations in the world but they national team is often more boring than watching paint dry.
That's why I always hope for Argentina to do well....they play the beautiful game beautifully. They don't often win it all but they are great to watch nonetheless. It doesn't hurt that my mom was raised in Argentina so I win brownie points with mom (useful when I need to secure babysitting services) by cheering for the albiceleste.