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Spain Beat Italy on Penalties |
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Written by Administrator
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Sunday, 22 June 2008 |
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Euro 2008 - Spain v Italy Spain met Italy tonight in their Euro 2008 quarter final clash. What looked lke it could be the best match of the tournament so far with their fiercely contested rivalry.
The Spanish have had a good tournament so far winning the maximum 9 points from the group section but in their last two games, they don't look as sharp as Spain have in the past. The Italians, on the other hand started the tournament slowly but have picked up steam with each match. In the end it ended up a 4-2 win for Spain in a penalty shootout.
On the night however, it was a fairly even match with neither team making many chances in the first half, the best chance coming in the 42nd minute when Silva fell in the box with a rough challenge from Grosso. Call for a penalty ensued but the referee was having none of it. The replay showed that it was definitely a foul but was just outside the box when the challenge took place. It should've been a free kick but the referee and his assistant made bad calls and nothing was awarded.
The second half went along the same lines as the first with neither team seeing much goal-mouth action. A lovely save from Buffon in the 79th minute saved Italy and moments later another chance for Senna of Spain saw Buffon in action again but the goalkeeper managed to keep the sheet clean.
The 87th minute saw the ball fall to Guiza in the Italian box but as it came towards him he grabs the ball with both hands to control it! The referee see it and it's a free kick for Italy but to be honest, I think Guiza just wasn't thinking or maybe he fancies himself as a goalkeeper!
Although the Spanish certainly had the best of the latter half of the game, it was always destined for extra time and after 93 minutes the scores were still level at 0-0 with neither side able to break through.
The second minute of extra time saw a penalty called for by the Spanish but it was a 50/50 when Chiellini and Ramos both fell to the ground.
Both sides seemed to be invigorated in extra time with both teams desperate not to finish on penalties. Both teams created chances but that elusive goal didn't seem to want to come.
The second half of extra time started with both teams still all square with nothing between them and continued to give little entertainment to the fans. Both teams had half chances but nothing was forthcoming and it was into a penalty shootout.
Penalty shootouts are never a good way to bring a match to a conclusion and the Spanish knew that well having lost 3 of them in recent years. The Italians however, won the last World Cup on penalties.
After a dramatic climax, the Spanish won through 4-2 in the penalty shootout giving them a semi-final place against Russia. |
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