Italy's Mario Balotelli confident of reaching Confederations Cup final

Italy striker Mario Balotelli has declared that his side are confident of going all the way in the Confederations Cup after a fine start to the tournament.

Balotelli scored a late winner tonight as the Azzurri edged Mexico 2-1 in their Group A opener, with Andrea Pirlo also on target.

The 22-year-old believes that his team have enough quality in all areas to match Spain, Brazil and Uruguay if they reach the latter stages.

He told Rai Sport: "It was a great game, a great feeling and a wonderful crowd. I don't care about the referee, the important thing is that we won. That's all. If we win the next game, then we can progress.

"It would be wonderful to play here in the final and we will do everything to get there, it doesn't matter who it is against. Do we have what it takes to reach the final? I think we really do."

Cesare Prandelli's side are back in action on Wednesday against Japan in Recife.