By Simon Wright – Follow me on Twitter @Siwri88
Italy became the second team to definitely book their place
in the knockout stages of EURO 2016 with a dramatic late winner on Friday
afternoon against Sweden.
In a Group E game of precious few chances and a startling
lack of quality, it was Eder’s finesse finish in the 88th minute
that sealed victory for the Azzuri.
Antonio Conte’s side scarcely deserved it, but they showed
once again why they are the tournament masters and having the ability to claw
results out of difficult situations.
Repeating
history
Conte made just one change to the line-up that had beaten
Belgium four days earlier, with AS Roma’s Alessandro Florenzi coming into the
team at the expense of Matteo Darmian. He had little influence on proceedings
and none of the Italian attacking creative forces that bossed things against
the Belgians had a great game.
Eder’s touch in general was not great. It underlined why he
struggled for form in his domestic game, having scored just once in Serie A for
Sampdoria since Christmas. However, his goal to win the contest was excellent.
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| Eder shows his passion after scoring the winner to book Italy's place in the last 16 |
Leonardo Bonucci played his part again. It was his throw-in
which was flicked on by substitute Simone Zaza. His header came into the path
of Eder (pictured), who escaped the attentions of two defenders, capitalised on a badly
timed slip from Andreas Granqvist and bent his shot past Andreas Isaksson. It
might have not been a game the Italians should have won but the goal deserved
to win this tight match.
It means that for the first time since EURO 2000, Italy have
won their first two games at the group stage of a major tournament. Then, they
reached the final. Will history repeat itself?
Off-target
Swedes
Incredibly, we are now two games into this tournament and
Sweden haven’t managed a shot on target. Their only goal so far was an own goal
from the Republic of Ireland’s Ciaran Clark.
There is far too much reliance on Zlatan Ibrahimovic and it
is showing. Even the master that is Zlatan can’t have a great game all the
time. He relished his battle with the Italian defenders that he knows so well
from his seven seasons in Serie A with Juventus, Inter Milan and AC Milan. Despite
this, Bonucci and Giorgio Chiellini largely controlled him throughout.
He had one chance, firing over the bar with the goal at his
mercy. Thankfully for him though, the offside flag had gone up, so the goal
won’t have counted even if he had found the target.
Sweden have been the poorest team so far, even worse than
Russia who have at least scored goals. They are misfiring badly and if they
don’t find their shooting boots against Belgium, an early exit beckons.
My best
three players of the match
Man of the Match: Giorgio Chiellini (Italy)
Giorgio Chiellini’s main job throughout was to keep Zlatan
Ibrahimovic restricted and he did this with the usual aggression we see from
him at club level. He also produced a vital block to deny Kim Kallstrom early
on.
2nd: Leonardo Bonucci (Italy)
Chiellini’s defensive partner at club and country level is
having a consistent and composed competition so far. Bonucci ensured John
Guidetti didn’t get a look-in and it was his throw-in that started the move for
the Italian winner.
3rd: Kim Kallstrom (Sweden)
He might not move around the field that freely but Kim
Kallstrom does bring plenty of steel to the Sweden midfield. He was one of
three members of this team that played in the EURO 2004 group game between the
sides. Kallstrom put in a good performance and won the midfield battle, even if
he ended up on the losing team.
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