WORLD CUP USA ’94 / QUARTERFINALS : Spain’s Scruffy Side Out to Change Past : Soccer: Players hope unshaven approach will help them beat Italy, end history of big-game failure.

Think of the Dallas Cowboys and Buffalo Bills.

Think of the last two Super Bowls.

Then imagine similar outcomes, in similar games, for the last 60 years.

Now, think of Italy and Spain. And think of today.

On a soccer field surrounded by a stadium filled with blue and white hostility, Spain battles history and reputation in a quarterfinal World Cup soccer game against the favored Italians.

This is about more than earning a date in the semifinals next week in New Jersey.

It is about neighbors who have been pecking at each other from across a pond for more than 500 years.

“Despite all conventional wisdom, there are still some in Spain who feel that Christopher Columbus belongs to them,” huffed Giancarlo Galavotti, noted Italian journalist. “Those are the same people, I suppose, who think Pinocchio was written by Walt Disney.”

When a generation of Spanish soccer players have wished upon a star, this is the victory they have wished for.

Italy narrowly leads the series, 8-6, with eight ties. But in important games other than in the Olympics, Italy almost always prevails.

The Italians set the tone for the rivalry in the first major professional meeting between the countries in 1934, in the second round of the second World Cup.

They not only defeated Spain in overtime, they pounded them so badly that only four Spaniards could take the field for the extra session.

Flash forward 60 years. In May, Italy bullied the Spaniards again.

This time, it was Italy’s best pro team, AC Milan, whipping Barcelona, 4-0, in the European Champions’ Cup final.

Sixteen players from that match are in this game; nine from Spain, seven from Italy.

Most Spanish players say they have already forgotten about May.

There is no thought of pay-back, they say. The World Cup is far too important for such distractions, they scold.

But defensemen Abelardo Fernandez says everyone is fibbing.

“This game is special,” said Fernandez, who did not play for Barcelona. “It is a chance for some guys on this team to get revenge. I know I am rooting for them.”

Anybody who has ever cheered for an underdog--yes, all of you who have wept with football’s Bills for the last four years--will be cheering for Spain.

In eight previous World Cup appearances, Spain has advanced to the semifinals once, and never beyond.

In 12 appearances, Italy has won three championships, and also has finished second and third.

But unfortunately for the Spaniards, most of those cheering for them will not be able to get seats at Foxboro Stadium.

While Boston-area officials were fuming when Ireland’s games were sent elsewhere, they were forgetting that their second-largest immigrant population hails from Italy.

“Thanks to Italy, people are going crazy about this game,” said E.J. Kahn of the Boston Host Committee. “We could fill three Foxboro Stadiums with the demand for tickets.”

Spain Coach Javier Clemente, who said the referees in earlier World Cup games have been affected by the crowds, hopes this will be an exception.

“We know we will not be the home team, but that will be OK--as long as the referee is neutral,” he said.

All things being equal, Spain believes it has its best chance to break the spell.

“Of course we do not fear the Italians,” said Spanish goalkeeper Andoni Zubizarreta. “They’ve had a lot of personal problems. We’ve been playing well.”

Indeed, Italy came within minutes of being eliminated from the tournament by Nigeria before two dramatic goals by Roberto Baggio last week, whereas the Spaniards were flawless in a 3-0 second-round victory over Switzerland.

Italy Coach Arrigo Sacchi--”They once said he was the best in the world, now they say he is the worst in the world,” Clemente said--is also planning four lineup changes.

The most notable involves flashy forward/midfelder Giuseppe Signori, who is expected to be benched in favor of playmaker Antonio Conte. With that move, Sacchi is essentially clearing the lane for Baggio, hoping to take advantage of his extraordinary ballhandling skills.

The Spaniards, meanwhile, have never been more stable. If star midfielder Fernando Hierro’s groin injury allows him to play, they will have their entire regular team available for the first time in the World Cup.

Spain also, finally, has an attitude . The Spaniards admitted Friday that their noticeably unshaven appearances have been part of their strategy.

They think their goatees and stubble will bring them luck. They say it worked for their 1992 Olympic champion soccer team in Barcelona.

A victory for them here would almost be something out of a book of fairy tales, which is where you can find the name of Carlo Lorenzini, an Italian from Florence.

In 1883, he wrote “The Adventures of Pinocchio.”

Not that the Spaniards care about stories involving a puppet swallowed by a whale. Not when, once again, it could happen to them.