BY THIS point, the cliche-churning pundits may want to come up with some new stereotypes to describe Italy. Whatever the 2-1 victory was, it was not "an accomplished defensive" performance, marked by "cynicism" and "counter-attacking". Rather, it was a case of improvisation, resourcefulness, drive and self-belief, both in the face of a gallant - if offensively undermanned - Scotland and two refereeing decisions which, in days of old, might have wrecked the Italians' psyche.

The 2000-odd Azzurri fans - half of them Scottish residents - present last night displayed two large banners, one emotional ("Ciao Gabbo", an homage to Gabriele Sandri, the supporter killed by a policeman last weekend) and one destined to evoke more controversy back home ("Justice for Gabriele: Now Kill Us All", a reference to the murdered supporter and a veiled threat towards the police).

But those were Italian matters and they felt a million miles from Hampden Park. The fear was that the world champions would not achieve qualification to Euro 2008. It had happened before. In fact, it happened to Italy themselves back in 1984.

Anyone expecting to see the stereotype of the Italy of old - solid in defence, catenaccio up and down the pitch, nippy strikers hitting on the break - was always going to be disappointed. Partly because it doesn't mesh with Roberto Donadoni's philosophy, partly because Italy don't have the players to play that way anymore.

Thus the game plan was a different one. Donadoni instructed his defence to push up whenever possible, while asking his strikers to mark back. The idea was to compress play as much as possible, what Arrigo Sacchi, Donadoni's mentor at AC Milan, called the "short team".

By minimising the distance between the back four and the strikers, the idea is to clog the middle of the park, at which point the side with superior technique - supposedly Italy - would get the edge. At the same time, the opposing back four gets sucked up the pitch, ideally leaving space behind for the speedy Antonio Di Natale and the less-speedy (but quicker than Stephen McManus) Luca Toni.

That was the idea, anyway. But when you score inside two minutes, game plans often go out the window. When Di Natale received the ball in the box, drew three opponents to him and offered up a golden chance for Toni, who duly converted, it was the perfect start (and would have been even more perfect if Mauro Camoranesi had taken his chance less than a minute later, again taking advantage of some shaky Scottish defending). But it was, perhaps, too perfect.

All of a sudden, with the unexpected lead, Italy had to make adjustments.

Except they failed to do so and Scotland capitalised, creating numerous chances in the first half. Whether it was Italy's failings or Scotland's ability (or perhaps the psychological trauma of Di Natale's disallowed goal at the halfway mark for an offside which was obvious only to the Spanish linesman), the game clearly turned. It was Italy who were chasing. Italy who couldn't find answers to the questions Alan Hutton was raising down the flank. Italy who were second to headers on set pieces. Italy who looked ragged when in possession.

Midway through the second half, Scotland found their equaliser through Barry Ferguson. Again, the linesman played his part, as the Scotland captain appeared to be offside. But, all told, it was probably deserved. At that stage, tactically, Italy looked a mess.

But that's when things like guts and experience take over. The midfield took over, not in terms of possession, but in terms of leadership. Milan's trio of Massimo Ambrosini, Andrea Pirlo and Rino Gattuso matched the Scottish onslaught, steering the side through the final, heart-wrenching 20 minutes. Donadoni did his part too, sending on first the physical Vincenzo Iaquinta and then another defender, Giorgio Chiellini, with the sole task of halting the irrepressible Hutton, who by that point had been transformed into Cafu circa 1994.

Panucci's late winner finally broke Italy's winless streak in Scotland. In that sense it was entirely irrelevant, but it was, perhaps, a just reward for a controversial and often frustrating player who, on the night, brought all his experience to bear.

Relief all round then for the Azzurri, a side which clearly enjoys cutting things extremely fine. How fine? Ask Cannavaro, the Italy skipper.

"We were worried," he said after the match. "Very worried. We could feel the intensity of their supporters and we could see how it fed their players. Scotland are a good side. They never give up, but they're also intelligent on the pitch. They are very difficult to play against."

Donadoni, who - it has since emerged - would almost certainly have been sacked had things not gone Italy's way, was positively beaming at the end. The usually introverted boss had no hesitation about giving all the credit to his players.

"It's all down to them, not me," he said. "To perform the way they did in such difficult circumstances from the weather to the pitch, well, how can a manager take credit?"

Donadoni is probably right in the sense that, on the night, it was the individuals who distinguished themselves. Under the driving rain and with tactics going out the window for long stretches, football becomes a series of one-on-ones, footballers making decisions and trying to execute on their own. Jorge Valdano famously said that "11 footballers each using his own brain and putting it at the service of the common good will defeat 11 players who simply go out and do what the manager says, no matter how clever the manager is".

Last night, in Hampden's frigid cauldron, once the game had broken down, Valdano's words came to fruition. Italy's superior experience and, perhaps, belief made them stronger than both Scotland and the two controversial officiating decisions. There's a reason why they're the world champions.