Italy has qualified for the European Championship final. The Italians took the lead on Tuesday evening with a nice goal from Federico Chiesa. For a long time it seemed that he was shooting his country to the European Championship final, but in the final phase substitute Álvaro Morata forced an extension with the equalizer. Because it was still 1-1 after 120 minutes, a penalty shootout had to be used. In the end it was Morata who missed, after which Jorginho converted the decisive penalty. In the final, Italy will face the winner of the other semi-final between England and Denmark.
The proportions were clear in the opening phase: Spain had the ball, Italy was pushed back. Luis Enrique’s team let the ball go around at a high pace. This did not lead to great opportunities. Spain was a bit of a shock in the opening phase when Nicolò Barella hit the post from a difficult angle, but after his shot the flag was rightly raised for offside. On the other side of the field, the strong playing Pedri had a fantastic through ball to Mikel Oyarzabal. The latter, however, did not get the ball well and could therefore not become a threat. After half an hour of play, Dani Olmo had the biggest chance after Gianluigi Donnarumma lost the ball with a sloppy kick. The goalkeeper corrected his mistake by making a clever save on Olmo’s attempt.
The match developed at a fast pace, with Spain calling the shots. In the midfield in particular, the difference was made by Luis Enrique’s team. Italy could only hand out pinpricks. On the stroke of half-time, Emerson Palmieri tried from a difficult angle. The replacement for the injured Leonardo Spinazzola shot over Unai Símon’s goal. His shot was only Italy’s first goal in the first half. The game in the second half was unchanged. Spain immediately sought the attack and was close to 0-1 four minutes after tea. After a sharp cross by Olmo, Giovanni Di Lorenzo prevented Ferrán Torres from scoring at the far post.
Spain increased the pressure. Just minutes after Olmo’s dangerous cross, Sergio Busquets failed to score his third goal in Spanish service. From the edge of the penalty area, the Barcelona midfielder shot just over Donnarumma’s goal. From the counterattack that followed, Simón was able to easily save a shot by Chiesa. After an hour of play, the Spanish keeper had no answer to a shot from Chiesa. True la Roja thought of attacks, it was Italy that switched at lightning speed. Chiesa picked up the ball after a clumsy defense from the Spanish rear, entered the penalty area and curled the ball into the far corner: 1-0. The goal opened up the game completely.
Luis Enrique intervened immediately after the goal and took Torres to the side in favor of Morata, who was passed by the national coach for the semi-finals. The game went back and forth: Spain looked for the equalizer, Italy preyed on the counterattack. With more than twenty minutes left on the clock, Simón prevented the 2-0. Chiesa set Domenico Berardi free in front of the keeper, but the substitute was not given the chance. Spain, which was the dominant party over the entire match, escaped a greater backlog and at the same time increased the pressure itself. That eventually resulted in the equalizer ten minutes before the end. Morata entered the combination with Olmo, penetrated the penalty area and, thanks to an excellent assumption, was able to finish from close range: 1-1. Spain tried to push through and decide the game in regular time. However, that didn’t work; an extension proved necessary.
It marked the third extension for Spain. In the eighth finals, the Spaniards won after extra time against Croatia and in the quarterfinals after penalties from Switzerland. The 2010 world champion had a great chance in the first half of extra time. After a tight cross from Olmo, Morata got the ball at his feet. He lashed out and Italy escaped through a scrimmage. Mancini’s team struggled with Spain and needed a lot of fouls. Spain did everything they could to avoid a penalty shootout, while Italy appeared to be on the gums and trying to survive. The game went back and forth in the second half of extra time. Berardi scored from a difficult angle but did so from an offside position and so his goal was disallowed. Both teams failed to score and so a penalty shootout had to be used to determine the European Championship finalist.
Simón, who already scored two penalties against Switzerland, started strongly. He saved Manuel Locatelli’s first penalty. Dani Olmo then failed right after by shooting the ball over Donnarumma’s goal. Andrea Belotti, Gerard Moreno, Leonardo Bonucci, Thiago Alcántara and Federico Bernardeschi did not fail, after which it was Morata’s turn. His effort was turned by Donnarumma, after which Jorghinho shot Italy to the European Championship final.
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