France v Italy: The occasional glimpse of blue on the busy streets of Berlin serves as a quiet reminder that there is still unfinished business here in a city so vast and sprawling that in certain parts it seems even a World Cup final could pass unnoticed.

While the growing presence of French and Italians is apparent enough around the city's main tourist spots, the similarity of their garb gives no hint of the scale of the rivalry that will be renewed at the Olympic Stadium tomorrow evening.

Few countries have faced each other on the football field so many times over so long a period, but never before have the stakes been higher when the two have met, and rarely can one of their encounters have been so hard to call.

The French go into the game seeking a fairytale ending to what would be one of the greatest stories the game has produced.

For their part, the Italians seek to restore pride dented by the dramatic events that unfolded in Rotterdam six years ago and eroded to such an extent since that the country needs its team to win here if it to restake its claim to be among the game's truly great nations.

In truth, neither of the finalists looks a genuinely outstanding side, but after a good tournament in which we have been treated to a handful of unforgettable contests, there is reason still to hope they might serve up a really memorable final.

As on all such occasions, much will depend on whether those capable of transforming a game into something really special rise to the occasion. Clearly, what nobody will lack is the motivation to do so - with the likes of Zinedine Zidane and Fabio Cannavaro all out to mark what will most likely be their last appearance on the world stage with a suitably grand exit.

Given how the two teams came through the knock-out stages, it is strange to recall just how poorly each started this competition.

Against Spain and Brazil, France provided long-overdue demonstrations of an ageing team's enduring grandeur. In their defeat of the host nation on Tuesday, meanwhile, the Italians showed that, while they can play with all the defensive efficiency of their sometimes-great predecessors, this generation is not merely hell-bent on the avoidance of misadventure.

If the French do emerge victorious, then much of what is written and remembered will centre on Zidane, described by Italian coach Marcello Lippi as the best player the world has seen during the last 20 years.

Even if the 34-year-old really does breath life into his legs one last time and finish on a high, however, the story of his country's revival as a footballing force has been an ensemble affair.

Like their skipper, the other French veterans have taken it in turns to play the part of hero, Patrick Vieira excelling against Togo and Spain, an inspired Zizou engineering the win over Brazil and Lilian Thuram underscoring French superiority against Portugal. Claude Makelele has been his usual model of quiet efficiency, and Fabien Barthez - some moments of mayhem aside - has performed solidly, conceding just two goals in six games.

Players such as William Gallas, Franck Ribery and Florent Malouda have also contributed hugely to their side's progress over the last few weeks. Finally, yesterday, one of the team, Willy Sagnol, gave public credit to manager Raymond Domenech, the man, he said, who had confronted them with their problems ahead of the game against Togo and "given us the keys" with which they could move forward.

The changes of personnel and tactics that have served the French so well in the past few weeks have undoubtedly been a collaborative effort, but after two years of stubbornly imagining he could succeed with largely average players, Domenech is to be applauded for belatedly overcoming his differences with some great ones.

To date, a heavily revamped approach has worked well, but mindful perhaps of how dependent they are on the team's older players, they have done barely enough to get by in a couple of their most recent games.

Against Spain, they did fight valiantly to come from behind, but against Brazil and Portugal a solitary goal was enough to tip the balance of their game toward defence.

They are fortunate in being able to field the same 11 players again. There has been a familiar look about the changes Domenech has made recently and they have repeatedly been about replacing tired legs in an attack that has become the first line of defence.

For the approach to work tomorrow evening they will need to score first, and the Italians are unlikely to yield easily.

Assuming Thierry Henry plays alone up front again, he is in for the toughest day of what has already been a gruelling World Cup for the Arsenal striker.

What will be at least as interesting to monitor as the 28-year-old's attempts to make mischief amid a tightly guarded Italian area will be the ability of those behind him, most notably Zidane, to lend support.

"You don't really stop Zidane," laughed Italy's Gennaro Gattuso yesterday, "although sometimes when he is out of form he simply stops himself. If not, then the best you can do is hope to control him and even for that you need all the luck in the world and to have made the sign of the cross."

If, for whatever reason, Zidane does fail to make a major impact then the Italians' goal of a fourth world title, their first since 1982, will look much more attainable.

At the back they are at least as impressive as the French, while in midfield they look well equipped for the task, Andrea Pirlo and Francesco Totti having the ability to turn a game at this level. Even allowing for the fact 10 players have scored their 11 goals, however, their reliance on Luca Toni up front will be a concern.

Ahead of this intriguing tie, Italy's supporters appear to have fractionally the greater basis for optimism - particularly if their side is patient enough to force the match into extra-time.

The citizens of Berlin and Germany - like the rest of us - will just hope these two teams manage to produce a fitting end to what has been a fine few weeks of football.

Italy (4-4-1-1)

Buffon; Zambrotta,Cannavaro, Materazzi, Grosso; Camoranesi, Pirlo, Gattuso, Perrotta; Totti; Toni

Coach: Marcello Lippi

France (4-2-3-1)

Barthez; Sagnol, Thuram, Gallas, Abidal; Makelele, Vieira; Ribery, Zidane, Malouda; Henry

Coach: Raymond Domenech