Italy 2-1 Austria
Italy are through to the quarter-finals of Euro 2020, and they really had to earn it as they beat a spirited Austria 2-1 in extra time.
The Austrians put up a stiff battle against the Azzurri, who the Euro 2020 betting odds had as the massive favourites after they steamrolled their way through the group stage with three wins out of three.
But the Austrian resistance eventually broke as substitutes Federico Chiesa and Matteo Pessina scored in the first period of extra time. Sasa Kalajdzic struck six minutes from time to give Austria some hope, but it wasn’t enough as Italy held on for the win, setting a new record with their 31st game in a row unbeaten.
Highlights of the game
The big Euro 2020 news for Italy was that Roberto Mancini sent Manuel Locatelli, the breakout star of the group stage, to the bench. In stepped Marco Verratti to start despite not playing a minute in the group stage as he recovered from a knee injury.
However, that key midfield change did not alter the Italians’ approach all that much as they came out and attacked the Austrians.
The Azzurri’s first big chance fell to Nicolo Barella, whose right-footed shot from just inside the box was well-saved by the feet of Austrian keeper Daniel Bachmann.
The Italians then came oh-so-close to scoring the opening goal just over the half-hour mark as Ciro Immobile’s speculative shot from way outside the penalty area rattled the post.
Austria did not get a shot on target in the first half, but they created the better chances coming out of the break.
They had a free kick on the edge of the area which captain David Alaba took, but it went just over the bar. Italy captain Leonardo Bonucci then had to intervene to deflect a Marcel Sabitzer shot away for a corner.
Austria also thought they had taken a shock lead in the 65th minute as Marko Arnautovic headed the ball onto the inside of the crossbar and in. However, the goal did not count as the veteran striker had just strayed offside.
Mancini did eventually bring Locatelli on as a substitute, as well as Matteo Pessina and Federico Chiesa. And while they could not provide Italy’s winner after 90 minutes, they proved pivotal in extra time.
Chiesa broke the deadlock just five minutes into the first period of extra time. The Juventus star did so well to control Leonardo Spinazzola’s cross and set himself up for a left-footed volley, which he blasted past Bachmann.
And Italy would get that all-important second goal just before the end of the first period through Pessina. The Atalanta man – who scored the winner in their group finale against Wales – took the ball after Francesco Acerbi’s slip inside the box, evaded an Austrian defender and thumped the ball into the corner from a tight angle.
However, Austria still had 15 minutes to find two goals, and they pulled one back six minutes from time through one of their own substitutes. Sasa Kalajdzic somehow got his head onto a corner despite being surrounded by Italy defenders on the near post and Gigi Donnarumma could not keep it out.
But it was too little, too late for Austria as Italy held on for a hard-fought victory that takes them to the quarter-finals.
Key statistics
After Italy dominated in the group stage, they were given all they could handle by Austria. The Austrians nearly had a 50-50 split of possession and fired off 16 shots. The Azzurri still held the significant 27-16 shot advantage, although it was much closer in terms of shots on target (6-3).
Pessina – who did not make the original Euro 2020 squad and only came on as a late replacement for the injured Stefano Sensi – has suddenly turned into one of Italy’s most prolific goalscorers. He has already scored four goals for his country in just eight caps, with all four goals coming within the last month. Meanwhile, Chiesa scored only his second goal for his country in his 29th cap.
What’s next?
Italy are off to the quarter-finals, where they will meet the winner of the massive Belgium-Portugal tie. The superstar strikers of Belgium and Portugal – Romelu Lukaku and Cristiano Ronaldo – both play in Italy’s Serie A, so the Azzurri should be quite familiar with the threat they both pose.
Whether it’s Belgium-Italy or Portugal-Italy, it should be a terrific tie with SBOTOP odds that figure to be very close.
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