Italy beat Spain on penalties to reach Euro 2020 final
Italy beat Spain 4-2 on penalties after a 1-1 draw in a magnificent Euro 2021 semi-final at Wembley on Tuesday, as Jorginho converted the decisive kick to take the Azzurri through to the final of a tournament in which they have been the outstanding side.
They were not always on top in this game though, with Spain the better side for long spells of an epic contest before Federico Chiesa, the Juventus forward, gave Italy the lead with a fabulous finish an hour into a match watched by a crowd of almost 58,000.
The much-maligned Alvaro Morata, who was dropped from the starting line-up here, came off the bench to equalise with 10 minutes of normal time left.
No further scoring in extra time meant penalties again for Spain, who had beaten Switzerland in a shoot-out in the quarter-finals.
They had also beaten Italy on penalties at Euro 2008, but this time misses from Dani Olmo and then Morata saw Spain give up the advantage they had been handed when Manuel Locatelli failed with the first kick in the shoot-out.
The Italians celebrated at the end with a large contingent of their UK-based supporters, and a team that has been rejuvenated under Roberto Mancini continues to dream of winning a first European Championship title since 1968.
Now unbeaten in 33 games, they go through to Sunday’s final to face either England or Denmark, who meet in Wednesday’s second last-four tie.
“I have to thank the players because they believed right from day one that we could do something incredible,” said Mancini. “We haven’t yet done everything we need to though, there is still one step to go.”
It is nine years since Spain mauled Italy 4-0 in the Euro 2012 final in Kiev to win a third consecutive major tournament, and this was the fourth consecutive Euro in which these powerhouses had met.
Spain won the first two of those meetings, but the last two have now gone to Italy.
“It is not a sad night for me by any means,” said Spain coach Luis Enrique. “We can go home knowing we competed and were among the best teams.”
Hero & villain
What the game lacked in the first half was drama in front of goal, although Italy’s Donnarumma made one crucial save to deny Dani Olmo in the 25th minute.
Spain had enjoyed the better of the game but Italy went ahead on the hour thanks to a goal of the highest quality. A move that started with Donnarumma’s throw out saw Insigne play Immobile in behind.
Immobile was thwarted by Aymeric Laporte’s tackle but the ball fell to Chiesa and he picked his spot in the far corner of Unai Simon’s goal on his right foot.
Spain reacted by sending on Morata and Gerard Moreno, and just as Italy looked to be seeing out the victory, Morata was the man who got the leveller.
After collecting the ball midway inside the opposition half, Morata played a one-two with Olmo as he cut through the defence and slotted in. It was a deserved equaliser, and Spain had a spring in their step going into extra time, but they could not take that into the decisive shoot-out.
‘Outplayed Italy’
Spain captain Sergio Busquets said the team will return stronger after gaining vital experience during their run to the Euro 2020 semi-finals.
“It’s a shame, we would’ve have liked for our tournament not to end today but that’s football,” Busquets told Radio Marca.
“The team was very good, we were the better team for almost the whole match. We can be proud, I feel pride for my teammates. Everyone was making Italy favourites, but we showed we’re better.”