However, while Italy counter-attacked perfectly in the 1º st half with dangerous players Eder & Pelle running riot, the 2º nd half was a master-class of defending that kept out the final desperate Spanish attempts.
The Italians were quicker, more determined & physical stronger from the start. Spain was lost, with bad field positioning & inaccurate passing. The Italians had a clear game plan & worked the counter-attacks to perfection. After a couple of saves from De Gea, a free kick outside the box opened the can. A powerful Eder shot hit Spanish goalkeeper De Gea & Chiellini scored from the deflection in the 33rd min.
Italy had more chances that luckily at this "early" stage were not goals against Spain.
Spanish Coach Del Bosque then took off Nolito & put on Aduriz for the 2º half to change the play & put muscle upfront against the experienced Italian central defenders. The idea worked as Spain began finding opportunities but the defending from the Italians was superb.
Spain then lost Aduriz to injury & young Lucas Vazquez came on the put some fresh legs upfront. More opportunities arose for Spain but Italian goalkeeper Buffon then did his stuff blocking off an Iniesta shot & more dangerous attempts for Spain.
Spain was desperate & began an all out attack phase that nearly gave the equalizer in the 88th min but Pique missed in front of Buffon who stopped the shot. With Spain skewed upfront a counter-attack opened Spain & Pelle scored the second for Italy in the 90th min to secure the Italian victory.
Italy now moves onward in the tournament & will meet Germany next Saturday, while Spain goes home with the "end of a marvellous generation of players". For Spain it is now all questions like, will Coach Del Bosque continue? If not, who will be the new Selector-Coach? Will their be some "in-house" cleaning? Was this the last Spanish National team call-up for Casillas?
Stay tuned!
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