Euro 2008 - Quarterfinals: Spain Eliminates Italy On Penaly Kicks (4-2)
June 23rd 2008 00:19
This is what happens when a team relies exclusively on one aspect of their game. It happened to the Czech who thought that Petr Cech was an impenetrable wall. It happened to the Netherlands who thought that the Russians would expose their flanks to counterattacks. Today, it happened to Italy who thought that they didn't need to score goals to win it – they had Buffon to stop the penalty kicks at the end. But today, the best goalkeeper wasn't Italian, he was a young Spaniard by the name of Iker Casillas.
The game was a real snooze-fest as Spain was afraid to commit too many people to the attack while Italy just seemed to pass the time to get to the shootout. Statistics show that Spain had twice the amount of shots as Italy who were content to rely on their defensive efforts for much of the game. The match really started to pick up at the hour-mark when Cesc Fabregas replaced Xavi Hernandez in midfield while Santi Carloza replaced an ineffective Andres Iniesta. Once that change was made, Spain could use long balls in their offensive rushes instead of sticking to their quick short passes, effectively varying their attacking approach. But it was obvious that no goal would come despite all the great passes from Fabregas. The Italian defense formed a wall that protected their box, and Spain's best chances only came from long-range shots – easy stuff for Buffon. As a proof that Italy were taking this match to a shootout since the beginning was the timing of Del Piero's entrance. Roberto Donadoni put the Juventus striker on the field at the beginning of the second half of extra-time even though Cassano, Perotta, Toni, Camoranesi (who replaced Perotta), and Di Natale (who replaced Cassano) were completely off of their game.
On the penalties, Casillas stopped both Di Natale and De Rossi's shots while Buffon could only stop Daniel Güiza. Fabregas scored the winning goal as Spain defeated Italy 4-2 on penalty shots. They go on to face a different Russian team for a remake of their group match.
My man of the match: Iker Casillas. He made the stops when he had to including a leg save after a goal-mouth scramble at the 61st minute and a superb save on Di Natale's header at the 5th minute of extra-time. Not to mention that he also stopped two penalty kicks.
Honorable mentions:
- Giorgio Chiellini. He was the best player of the Italian team, period.
- Carles Puyol. Once again, the Barcelona defender was a rock in defense, making sure that Luca Toni had the minimal amount of space possible.
- David Silva. He was the best Spanish player when they were on the offense.
- Cesc Fabregas. The Arsenal midfielder showed up when it mattered, scoring Spain's fourth penalty-kick and, thus, sending them through to the semifinals.
The game was a real snooze-fest as Spain was afraid to commit too many people to the attack while Italy just seemed to pass the time to get to the shootout. Statistics show that Spain had twice the amount of shots as Italy who were content to rely on their defensive efforts for much of the game. The match really started to pick up at the hour-mark when Cesc Fabregas replaced Xavi Hernandez in midfield while Santi Carloza replaced an ineffective Andres Iniesta. Once that change was made, Spain could use long balls in their offensive rushes instead of sticking to their quick short passes, effectively varying their attacking approach. But it was obvious that no goal would come despite all the great passes from Fabregas. The Italian defense formed a wall that protected their box, and Spain's best chances only came from long-range shots – easy stuff for Buffon. As a proof that Italy were taking this match to a shootout since the beginning was the timing of Del Piero's entrance. Roberto Donadoni put the Juventus striker on the field at the beginning of the second half of extra-time even though Cassano, Perotta, Toni, Camoranesi (who replaced Perotta), and Di Natale (who replaced Cassano) were completely off of their game.
On the penalties, Casillas stopped both Di Natale and De Rossi's shots while Buffon could only stop Daniel Güiza. Fabregas scored the winning goal as Spain defeated Italy 4-2 on penalty shots. They go on to face a different Russian team for a remake of their group match.
My man of the match: Iker Casillas. He made the stops when he had to including a leg save after a goal-mouth scramble at the 61st minute and a superb save on Di Natale's header at the 5th minute of extra-time. Not to mention that he also stopped two penalty kicks.
Honorable mentions:
- Giorgio Chiellini. He was the best player of the Italian team, period.
- Carles Puyol. Once again, the Barcelona defender was a rock in defense, making sure that Luca Toni had the minimal amount of space possible.
- David Silva. He was the best Spanish player when they were on the offense.
- Cesc Fabregas. The Arsenal midfielder showed up when it mattered, scoring Spain's fourth penalty-kick and, thus, sending them through to the semifinals.
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