Football News: Italy are champions of Europe, they have defeated England in the final of UEFA Euro 2020. The Three Lions' wait for an international trophy continues as they lost 3-2 on penalties. It was a game of two halves, England dominated the first part and were forced back by some brilliant possession game by the Azzurri’s. Gianluigi Donnarumma was the difference between the two teams, his heroics in penalties gave Italy the edge on the night.
England went into the game with 3 at the back (3-4-3 formation), they tried putting pressure on the Italians with the help of their wingbacks. It did work, as the wingback’s Trippier and Shaw combined to give England the lead. A great cross towards the far post by Trippier was sent home with a delightful volley by Shaw. England dominated the entire first half and it seemed as if it will be coming home. Italy hardly had any of the ball and they were far from their best.
The half-time team talk surely did wonders for the Italians as they started to press higher up the field. They were quick to recover balls and put pressure on the home team. Federico Chiesa of Juventus was by far the biggest threat for the men in white. He kept running towards the English defence and took shots at every possible opportunity. Pickford somehow managed to deal with the Chiesa threat but Italy managed to bounce back with the help of a corner. The veteran centre-back Leonardo Bonnuci stepped up and equalised with a close-range tap in.
Everyone expected a stronger response from the English camp but Italy were in no mood to let them have possession of the ball. Italy kept pushing for a second goal and Roberto Mancini’s substitutions were on point. He made a majority of his substitutions in the second half and fresh legs did help his team's cause.
With both scores level, the Euro 2020 final went into extra time. The substitution of Jack Grealish did cause Italy a lot of trouble. Suddenly, England had a lot of the ball and were creating chances at will. Jadon Sancho and Rashford were subbed on in the 120th minute of the game, all they could do was take a penalty kick if asked to. The second half of extra time was dominated by England but with no goals in extra time, penalties are how it was decided.
It was time for the goalkeepers to step up to the occasion and Gianluigi Donnarumma did step up with some big saves. The 22-year-old goalkeeper made life difficult for the English penalty takers. Belotti’s miss did put a lot of pressure on Gigi but it was meant to be his night as he saved 3 penalties in a row to guide Italy to glory. Italy did win on the night but England have shown some character throughout this journey. This group of young English players will come back stronger in the upcoming World Cup.
