Gelsenkirchen Gelsenkirchen: Europe beware – Spain could be back. The three-time European champions advanced to the Euro 2024 round of 16 after a 1-0 win over Italy on Thursday. A 55th-minute own goal by Ricardo Calafiori paved the way for victory in the Group B game at the Veltins Arena in Gelsenkirchen. But that did not tell the full story of Spain’s superb performance, which surely makes them one of the favourites to win a record fourth European Championship. Spain completely dominated defending champions Italy, with 16-year-old winger Lamin Yamal further enhancing his reputation as one of football’s most exciting young stars.
Player of the match Nico Williams also troubled Italy’s defenders and headed wide of the crossbar in the second half. Italy goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma kept the score low by making several fine saves but inadvertently pushed the ball into the feet of Calafiori, who could not prevent it from going into his own goal. “They deserved to win and we were never in the game,” said Italy coach Luciano Spalletti. “There was too much difference. We were constantly under pressure, we could not close the gaps between the different units and they were able to create problems for us. They caused us more problems than the score line suggests, let’s not get away with it.” Spain produced a performance that was reminiscent of the years when it ruled international football by winning consecutive Euros and World Cups from 2008 to 2012.
#Euro #Spain #wins #Italy
2024-06-21 23:02:24