It's a showdown about waiting. The only time italians have reached the top of Europe is 53 years ago, and the England fans who have been singing "Football Home" for a long time have never witnessed the glory of the Delaunay Cup.
In the early morning of July 12, Beijing time, the final of the 2020 European Championship, after 120 minutes of 1-1, Italy defeated England on penalties and won the championship.
England and Italy have met 27 times in history, and the Blues have a slight advantage with 10 wins, 9 draws and 8 losses.
The two teams last met in the intercontinental tournament in the group stage of the World Cup in Brazil: on 15 June 2014, at the Manaus Amazon Arena, England lost 2-1 to Italy, scored by Marquisio, Sturridge and Balotelli.
Nine of the players who made the finalists at the time played in the European Championship: Sterling, Luke Shaw and Henderson in England, and Bonucci, Insigne, Villati, Chiellini, Sirigu and Immobile in Italy.
Italy's starting line-up has not changed compared to the first two rounds of knockout rounds, while Southgate has sent right-winger Trippier to use the three-back system used against Germany.
At the beginning of the match, it was raining heavily in London, and Maguire's return pass error showed his nervousness, giving Italy the first corner of the game. But it was this sudden corner kick that caused the blue-clad army with high pressure to lose its defensive position. Harry Kane's midfield transition was split between the balls and Trippier, who inserted on the right, who sent a cross and England's left-wing defender Luke Shaw inserted into the box and fired straight into the net.
Opening 1 minute and 56 seconds, 1-0, England, playing at home, made a fantastic start. It was the first goal of a Manchester United defender international's career and the fastest in the history of the European Cup final.
Mancini could not understand the team's defensive chaos and expressed his dissatisfaction through the stall. After conceding the ball, Italy continued to carry out high-level pressing and took the initiative to launch an offensive. In the 6th minute, Insigne's right-footed free-kick went high over the crossbar.
When Harry Kane continued to retreat into midfield to form a connection with Trippier, the Italian midfielder's defensive line was frequently problematic. Around the opening 10 minutes, Trippier had already delivered three threatening crosses. As the rain in London grew heavier, the midfield rush between the two sides became more intense, and the opportunities for both teams to hit the danger zone were not very many.
In the 35th minute, Chiesa Jr. started from midfield, got rid of Rice's struggle, and directly left-footed shot the goal, the ball slightly offside. Italy's number of shots came to 3, but failed to hit the target. England remained the opening shot.
At the end of the first half, Italy, which had 60% of the ball control, fell behind by one goal, and England, which was firmly defending the counterattack, maintained the score.
At the beginning of the second half, Luke Shaw returned to Sterling on the bottom line, and the Manchester City winger immediately burst into the box, but unlike the merit of the semi-finals, he fell to the ground after being contacted and did not exchange for a blow penalty.
In the 50th minute, Sterling's foul allowed Italy to take a free kick from the edge of the penalty area, and Insigne hit it high. Three minutes later, seeing that the situation had not improved much, Mancini took the lead in making substitutions: Barrera down, Christante, Inmobile down, Berardi on. In the 55th minute, England took advantage of a free-kick from the front to complete the second shot, and Maguire's header went high over the crossbar. A minute later, after adjusting the position, Chiesa connected with Insigne, whose small angle shot was saved by Pickford.
In the 62nd minute, it was still Chiesa Jr. who fired a right-footed shot from inside the penalty area, and Pickford pounced on the side to keep the goal safe.
Under intense pressure in the backline, England had to capture opportunities with set pieces. In the 63rd minute, Trippier sent a corner kick, Stones completed the race, and Donnarumma lifted the ball off the line.
But in the 66th minute, Italy used a corner kick to equalize, and after the wrong entry and exit, Bonucci scored a shot through the net in a chaotic battle. 1-1, the two sides returned to the balance of the score. At the age of 34 and 71 days, Bonucci became the oldest goal scorer in the history of the European Championship final, and this goal also helped Italy set a record for the most goals in a single season in the team's history with 13 goals. In the 70th minute, England had just 29 per cent of the ball and Italy had the complete advantage on the pitch.
In the 85th minute, Chiesa, who had performed well, came off injured and Bernardeschi came off the bench. Neither team scored in late 90 minutes, and the European Championship final went into extra time.
In the first half of extra time, unlike Southgate's staging, Mancini continued to make adjustments: Insigne and Verratti went off, and Belotti and Locatelli came on.
In the 96th minute, Calvin Phillips' long-range shot from a corner was already one of the Three Lions' few dangerous attacks.
In the 99th minute, Southgate finally made an adjustment: Mount came off to play Gloris, who had given two assists in this tournament.
But it was Italy that first created the opportunity in extra time, and in the 103rd minute, Emerson assisted on the left side and sent a cross from Walker, and if it were not for Pickford's sideways block, Bernardeschi almost completed the shot. At the end of the first half of extra time, the two teams were still unable to break the goal.
In the second half of extra time, Bernardeschi's left-footed free-kick was confiscated by Pickford, and the melee created by England was fruitless. Penalty shootouts are inevitable -
Penalties in the first round: Italy's Berardi free throw, England's Harry Kane's penalty;
Second round: Belotti missed a penalty, Maguire hit a free throw;
Third round: Bonucci hit a free throw and Rashford missed a free throw;
Round 4: Bernardeschi hit a free throw and Sancho missed a free throw;
Round 5: Jorginho loses, Saka loses.
The battle was over and Italy won the penalty shootout.