Italy claimed their second European Championship trophy after they beat England 3-2 in a penalty shoot-out in the Euro 2020 final at Wembley Stadium in London on Sunday night.
This is the first major international trophy that Italy has won since their 2006 FIFA World Cup win. And the first European Championship title since 1968. Italy had reached the final in Euro 2000 but eventually lost to France in the finals and in Euro 2012, their dream was crushed again by Iker Casillas men.
As it happened
Luke Shaw had given England a dream start with a brilliant goal after two minutes. He became the fastest player to score a goal in the European Championship final. Italy looked down in the first half, and couldn’t able to hold on the chances. But Roberto Mancini’s team took control of the match after the first half and leveled through Bonucci’s goal after 67 minutes.
The match had ended 1-1 after extra time. And for the first time since the 1976 Euro final, the winner was to be decided on penalties. The 22-year-old, Gianluigi Donnarumma saved the penalties of Jadon Sancho’s and Bukayo Saka and took his team to the European Championship win. Federico Bernardeschi, Leonardo Bonucci, and Domenico Berardi scored in the penalties for Italy.
Italy was unarguably the tournament’s best team. They covered their all bases and looked favorites from the opening game when they swept Turkey aside. Italy has extended its unbeaten run to 34 games in all competitions. Roberto Mancini’s team also had a 100% record at the Euro 2020. England remains without a major trophy since 1966.
Reactions
Roberto Mancini Italy’s Coach on the historic win: “We don’t even realize what we have managed to achieve. We are delighted for people and the Italian public because they really deserve this after what has been a trying period. This is a great joy for us.”
“I cried on this ground 30 years ago after the 1992 European Cup final [when Sampdoria lost to Barcelona]. That really hurt back then. Winning the European Championship for the first time since 1968 and bringing home the trophy I do think it is something incredible.” He added
Leonardo Bonucci, the goalscorer for Italy in the final said: “We heard it day in, day out ever since Wednesday night, since the Denmark game, that the cup would be coming home to London. Sorry for them but actually the cup will be taking a nice flight to Rome and that way Italians all over the world can savour this competition. It is for everyone, we said from day one it was for them and us.”
Gareth Southgate: A huge disappointment for Southgate. The man who took charge of the England team in 2016 and change their fortunes completely.
“We’re hugely disappointed. The players have been an absolute credit, they’ve given everything they possibly could. They’ve run themselves into the ground. At times they played really well, at times we didn’t keep the ball quite well enough, especially at the start of the second half, but we can’t have any recriminations, they’ve been a joy to work with. They’ve gone further than we’ve gone for so long, but tonight it’s incredibly painful in that dressing room.” Gareth Southgate said in the post-match press conference.
Gianluigi Donnarumma (Italy goalkeeper), The hero of the match: “We have done something extraordinary. We are delighted. We didn’t give them an inch. You all know where we started. We are a fantastic team and we deserve this.”