Another great performance and Roberto Mancini's Italy goes on once again.
Initially accused of having beaten only "weak" teams (even if Switzerland later proved to be anything but "weak"), now the team coached by Roberto Mancini has overcome even Belgium, one of the teams considered favourites for the final victory with an excellent performance, deserving the victory.
Azzurri deserved to win, they almost always kept the ball in the game and basically Belgium had only two real clear scoring chances: a great shot by Kevin De Bruyne (played as a starter by Roberto Martinez even if injured), saved with a miracle save by Gigio Donnarumma and a shot at empty goal by Romelu Lukaku, rejected by Leonardo Spinazzola, once again among the best on the pitch for the Italian team.
The AS Roma winger unfortunately was injured, a bad injury (rupture of the Achilles tendon, the same injury Axel Witsel suffered in February, yesterday on the pitch against the Azzurri), further complicating things for Italy (and for Jose Mourinho above all). Despite a painful loss (and how much it hurt to see Spinazzola in tears), Italy managed to keep the lead until the last minute of play, thus winning a ticket for the semi-final against Spain on Tuesday night.
A heartbroken Spinazzola
Azzurri took the lead thanks to Nico Barella's goal (the simulation of Ciro Immobile before the shot of the Inter midfielder went around the world) and later doubled thanks to the extraordinary shot by Lorenzo Insigne, who as we had said in our previews was urged to perform this way. A great shot and wonderful goal, nothing for Thibaut Courtois to do. The first half seemed destined to end 2-0 for the Azzurri, but a very dangerous Jeremy Doku forced Giovanni Di Lorenzo to push him, while inside the area. Penalty, Lukaku took it and Donnarumma couldn't save this time.
In the second half, Italy built several chances to end the match, but Immobile went through another bad day and couldn't find the goal, sometimes he couldn't even find his teammates with easy passes. De Bruyne's poor condition was evident and decisive, but also the absence of Eden Hazard. Doku played very well, but the former Chelsea player has a creativity, a fantasy, a quality that no one else in Belgium has. Lukaku always left too alone between Giorgio Chiellini and Leonardo Bonucci, two physically dominant defenders, that made things difficult for him. A great performance by the two Juventus defenders, once again protagonists. The other star of the Azzurri was undoubtedly Jorginho, one of Italy's true top players. Immobile has been heavily criticised by Italian fans for his lack of contribution and now they hope to see the best Ciro against Spain. It is true, he runs a lot, but that's just not enough. His goals are fundamental for Italy, his level of performance will necessarily have to increase in the next match, against Alvaro Morata and his teammates.
Speaking of Luis Enrique's team, having beaten Switzerland, Spain reached the semifinals winning another match after the regular 90 minutes, this time only thanks to penalties. The Spaniards are not playing well, they are struggling in every game and against anyone, but moving forward is the most important thing and up to now, despite the many difficulties and the poor performance of some key players, Spain is succeeding in moving forward. Luis Enrique worked for Roma, he knows Italy and his best players very well, which is why he knows very well that a great performance will be needed to reach the final. His team doesn't lack talent, but in terms of performance and team play, for now the Azzurri seemed to belong to another category.
Jorginho was immense once again for Azzurri
The absence of Spinazzola will be an actual problem for Mancini: the Roma winger was hands down the best Italian player in this competition, guaranteeing running, quality and assists at every moment of the match. The Italian coach will thus have to play Emerson Palmieri, of Chelsea, who has completely different technical characteristics from those of Spinazzola. It is still early to talk about the formation choices, but it is not difficult to imagine that Mancini will confirm the team lined up against Belgium, with Verratti, Jorginho and Barella as midfielders, probably the best possible trio. Doubts about who will start between Chiesa and Berardi, but no doubt about Immobile, on whom Mancini seems to want to continue to bet on despite fluctuating (at the least) performances.
Italian fans are crazy with joy. On Friday night an incredible roar exploded at the final whistle, which recalled the street parties during the World Cup in 2006. The growing feeling is that Italy is living something extraordinary, that Italians fans are part of an adventure that will not be forgotten. Undoubtedly, anyway, it is still early and the next obstacle is Spain. At this point, however, it is impossible not to dream and it is impossible not to begin to really believe that they can win the European Championship. It would be silly, to be honest. Chiellini and Bonucci will have the advantage of having to mark Alvaro Morata, a teammate at Juventus, but at the same time this will be a problem, for the exact same reasons. The favourite team seems to be Italy, but Mancini and his boys know it very well. Every single victory must be built day after day, training after training, as he said even at the end of the match "it's not today's result, it's a work of many years that now is bearing fruit". And Italian fans keep dreaming...
