There are no generals on the battlefield, and the same is true in football. After more than 3 years of unbeaten in 37 matches in all competitions, the Italians have finally been pulled off the "altar". In the UEFA Nations League semi-finals that ended in the early morning of the 7th, the "home" Team's European Cup champions Italy lost 1-2 to the Spanish team that did not seem to be as strong as theirs, not only did not qualify for the final, but also let their unbeaten gold body in the past 1192 days be broken. In addition, the Italian team suffered a formal defeat in an official match at the Meazza Stadium in Milan for the first time.
The 3-year unbeaten record was ended
Although you are the winner of the European Championship, Italy's recent performance has not been satisfactory, except for the five-goal clean sheet Lithuania match a month ago, the last five matches, they have not been able to win in 90 minutes, including the competition with Spain in the semi-final of the European Cup, when although the Italians finally qualified and won the cup, the match against the Matadors, in fact, played better than the Spaniards.
Two months later, the Spaniards waited for an opportunity for revenge, and it was an away game they had never conquered before. Ferran Torres's second-time triumph allowed Enrique's side to finally leave the Meazza stadium with their heads held high, leaving the Italian with 90 minutes of reluctance to mention. The data shows that this is the first time that Spain has beaten Italy away from home in an official match. Spain has won twice in Italy, but both are friendly matches, and the most recent one has been 50 years away. One was in 1971 and one in 1930. Even counting this victory, Spain has only won 3, drawn 7 and lost 5 of their 15 away games against Italy. In addition, Italy's unbeaten record of nearly three years has also been ended, and their last loss was in September 2018, when the "Blues" also suffered a defeat in a European Nations League match, they lost 0-1 to Portugal, but since then, the team has embarked on an unbeaten journey, to this day. After Mancini took over Italy, the Italian team only lost 3 games in total.
In addition to these figures, what is even more difficult for Italian fans to accept is that this is the fourth defeat suffered by the team in the past 145 games at home in Italy, and it is also the first time that Italy has lost an official match at the Meazza Stadium. No wonder angry Blues fans booed former Milan goalkeeper Donnarumma during the game, of course, because of this, in addition to his general performance, it is not unrelated to his departure from AC Milan for Greater Paris in the past summer window.
After the game, the media of the two countries had very different attitudes
After the game, the Spanish media and the Italian media had very different attitudes, the former believing that the Matadors army was a bit back to the top, while the latter stubbornly said that in fact, the blue jackets did not play so badly. Post-match Spanish journalist Graham Hunt commented on the match: "It's become a cliché, but tonight is an indisputable fact: what was shown in the first and second halves was completely different. In the first 45 minutes, Spain adopted a very cautious, highly controlled strategy, which not only produced two goals, but also forced Italy to adjust the squad and also greatly increased Spain's confidence. In the second half, Spain was a bit like the Treble era of 2008-2012, taking the ball, passing the ball and letting the opponent chase the ball. Spain gave a special performance. ”
Italian journalist Paolo Menicucci commented after the game: "After 37 consecutive unbeaten games, Italy was defeated by Spain, and the blues' dream of winning the European Cup in the summer and then winning the European Nations League trophy was shattered." In football, small details can make a difference, and Spain, which performed well in the first half, deserved to win. Still, Italy could leave with its head held high, especially in the second half with 10 men (Bonucci was sent off) to fight Spain, which frightened Spain. Italy was defeated. ”
The result is there, the simple mouth is not to solve any problem, for Italy, as soon as possible to adjust their state, especially to solve the problem of attack, more important than anything.
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Torres, who is a two-degree winner, is a treasure
Although the game was not finished, Ferran Torres was still the best player in this Italian-Western war, and there was no one. Because in the post-match selection, UEFA also issued the title of the best in the whole game to the post-00s youngster. In Enrique's no-front, the combination of the winger from Manchester City and Oyasavar became Spain's winning formula.
At Manchester City this season, the young Torres is a regular in the main squad, although it is not yet at the absolute core, but considering that Guardiola will make rotation choices every game, it is not easy for him in his early twenties to gain sustained trust in such a fiercely competitive "Blue Moon". In the Spanish national team, Torres has basically become a sharp knife figure trusted by Enrique, especially when Morata is not in the team or unable to play, his role is even more important.
In the 17th minute of the match, he received a cross from Oyasaval from the left and fired a shot into the net. In half-time, Felan picked up Big Brother's cross from the left and broke the goal. He almost locked in the best of the game in advance, and the final result also showed that he was the biggest contributor to the team's wins. Statistics show that since 1 September 2020, Ferran Torres has scored 11 goals in 20 national team matches, ranking first in the top scorers of the same period and 6 goals more than Morata, who scored the second most goals. Unfortunately, he left the game with an injury at the beginning of the second half.
Although the game was not played for a long time, Torres was still named the best of the game after the game. UEFA Technical Observer Van Bronckhorst said: "Ferran Torres gave a very good performance, his two goals decided the game. After many people said there were no real goalscorers in the Spanish team, he played the role of a shooter and his two shots on goal were world-class. ”
As a party, he was also happy to see his goal help the team to victory, saying: "What a wonderful thing! The team played a great game against the European champions and I scored 2 goals... I'm happy for the team and I think the perseverance and training allowed us to win in the end. I had a little injury, but I was already thinking about the final. ”
The young Torres is the treasure in the hands of Manchester City, and of course the hope of Spain returning to the top.
Author: Zhang Kunlong
Source: Beijing Youth Daily