Euro 2020 final takeaways: Italy never wavered, and England lost its way

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 11/07/2021 (1872 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The question plagued Italy throughout its first major soccer tournament in five years: Is this team for real?

They’d missed the 2018 World Cup, after all, and lacked A-list stars. They were led by a manager on the road to redemption himself, and their near-record unbeaten run wasn’t full of top-calibre opponents.

On Sunday, Italy shut down all the doubters by beating England 3-2 in a penalty shootout to win the European championship for the first time in 53 years.

Things easily could have gone wrong after conceding the opening goal within two minutes of kickoff, but it was clear that this Italian squad never stopped believing. It shook off the early hit, weathered a bit of pressure from the home side at London’s raucous Wembley Stadium and grew into the game with ease.

For a team that faced skepticism because of its lesser-knowns, those players certainly weren’t unknown when they lifted the trophy:

• Midfielder Jorginho continued to pull the strings with no response from England.

• Federico Chiesa provided a spark that kept the opposition on its heels.

• The centre-back pairing of Giorgio Chiellini and Leonardo Bonucci — whose tap-in goal in the 67th minute would eventually send the game to extra time — maintained Italy’s solid defence.

When the game went to penalties tied 1-1, Italy’s fans rejoiced knowing they had 22-year-old Gianluigi Donnarumma — an imposing presence at six-foot-four — between the posts. England goalkeeper Jordan Pickford put up a fight with a pair of saves in the shootout, but Donnarumma matched him with relative ease and would be named player of the tournament.

Roberto Mancini also outmanaged English counterpart Gareth Southgate, particularly when it came to substitutions. Put it all together and the Italians were the most consistent team throughout the tournament, and the better side when it mattered most.

Italy’s outlook was one of the biggest stories heading into Euro 2020. In the end, it was also the best.

• England’s lament: England got off to a high-flying start, carving open the Italian defence by using width — and one lineup change — to its advantage.

Kieran Trippier replaced Bukayo Saka in the starting XI, switching England’s formation from 4-3-3 to 3-5-2. In the second minute, Trippier’s cross from the top right corner of the 18-yard box found Luke Shaw at Italy’s back post. The English wingback stunned Donnarumma with a half-volley, which found its way between the goalkeeper and the post for the fastest goal in Euro final history.

But within a half-hour, Southgate’s switch to a more defensive look — which he had used against Germany in the round of 16 to quell any early attacks — began to lag. Italy began to dominate, and England spent the majority of the rest of the match playing negative soccer, with 11 men behind the ball.

Winnipeg Free Press | Newsletter

Mike McIntyre | On Sports

Thursdays

Keep up to date on sports with Mike McIntyre's weekly newsletter.

Sign up for Mike McIntyre | On Sports

Sign Up

I consent to the Terms and Conditions, Cookie and Privacy Policies.

I consent to CASL agreement.

Despite access to arguably the deepest offensive reserves in the tournament, Southgate didn’t go to his bench until the 70th minute and sparingly after that. England never really took the game to Italy, or tried to put it away after that early strike. They finished with 38 per cent of the possession time and just one shot on target.

Practising shootouts had been a focal point for England, given their poor history when it comes to penalties. But when the time came against Italy, Southgate’s choices were questionable.

After captain Harry Kane and centre back Harry Maguire scored on England’s first two attempts, Southgate went to substitutes Marcus Rashford and Jadon Sancho, plus Saka. Rashford and Sancho had entered in the last minute of extra time after playing very little in the tournament, and both failed to score in the shootout — their first touches of the game. That left 19-year-old Saka — the second-youngest player on the team, featured on and off during Euro 2020 — to try to save them. He was denied by Donnarumma.

It was a strange series of decisions by Southgate, otherwise tactically savvy and progressive through the tournament. Overall, he has inspired the faith needed to take England forward. On Sunday, he got away from what had worked and it cost them dearly.

Laura Armstrong is a Star sports reporter based in Toronto. Follow her on Twitter: @lauraarmy