FIFA Confederations Cup 2013 semifinal: Italy vs Spain - Five talking points

There was an astonishing amount of speculation going into the final game at Fortaleza. Clashes between Spain and Italy are full of history. Both are bitter European rivals and Spain had plundered Italy the last time the two teams faces in the final of Euro 2012. Last night’s match was Italy’s game to save, and Spain’s game to win.

The Azzurri were in no mood to surrender and gave the Spaniards a tough fight. The match eventually remained 0-0 till 120 minutes, and was settled 7-6 on penalties. Bonucci lost his nerve on Italy’s seventh penalty and Spain’s Jesus Navas converted his. Until then, all the penalties had been almost perfect; and even though Italy lost, La Roja know that they could have lost as easily too. Here are five talking points from the pulsating encounter.

Outstanding Keeping:

The match pitted arguably the world’s best keepers against each other. And it has to be said that they did their reputations no harm. Each made vital saves that kept the score at 0-0. Most notable for Casillas was the pair of saves he made against Maggio’s headers. The Italian wing back got through on goal twice; but his headed efforts were saved by Casillas both times. Buffon, too, was immaculate in his performance. He dominated his box and did not let the Spanish attackers through for an easy sight of goal. His instinctive saves to shots from Navas and Xavi were brilliant, and so was his sprint off the line to scare Pedro away from the ball.

Tactics:

There was talk about how Cesare Prandelli would approach this particular fixture. He went in with an elementary 3-5-2, with the Juventus trio of Barzagli, Bonucci and Chiellini protecting Buffon. Maggio and Giaccherini played the role of auxiliary wing backs and were tasked with the job of leading attacks and building up play. The pair of De Rossi and Pirlo was extremely effective in midfield. De Rossi played like the battering ram he is; and even 34-year-old Pirlo was giving his 100% till the 120^th minute. Pirlo dictated play from deep, and the duo, along with Marchisio, did an excellent job of breaking up play and destroying Spain’s stranglehold on possession. Spain had only 54% possession throughout the match, and that says a lot about Italy’s hard work in midfield. Spain themselves were set up in a 4-3-3 formation, with Torres leading the attack and Busquets, Xavi and Iniesta completing a three-man midfield. Del Bosque once again chose Silva over Mata, which, in my opinion, was a wrong decision.

Outstanding performers:

For Italy, Maggio was the best player on the night. He was unstoppable as he blitzed up and down the right wing. One moment he could be seen tackling Silva, and running through on goal to meet Giaccherini’s cross the very next moment. He had a couple of good chances, but both were saved by Casillas. Defensively, too, he was solid and did his job well. For Spain, Torres was the man who looked to be their best hope. He was almost back to his old Liverpool self. He was getting stuck into defenders and holding the ball up. He was quick and deft with his passes and flick-ons, and gave himself a couple of good opportunities that just missed the goal.

Italian resilience:

Italy probably had more riding on this match than Spain. The 4-0 thrashing in the Euro 2012 final was their worst in history and must still hurt. The Italians looked motivated and were men on a mission. All of them were tireless and worked extremely hard. Giaccherini and Maggio, in particular, worked hard to close down spaces and then provide attacking outlets. De Rossi may not have seen much of the ball, but he was instrumental in breaking down the Spanish attack. He constantly man-marked Spain’s players and was almost impenetrable once he moved to defence. A special word here for the much-maligned Gilardino. He may not have done much in front of goal, but he too defended admirably from the top. Although Spain’s superior fitness showed in the hot and humid second half, the Italians just refused to concede ground to them.

Quality of football:

The Azzurri conjured their best tactical and positional display of the tournament. Spain. despite being weary, were also combative. Mata, Navas, Torres and Xavi were constantly knocking on Italy’s defence’s door, looking for a weakness. But the defence, and Chiellini in particular, was solid and made hardly any mistakes. Spain may not have had as much possession as they are used to, but Italy’s fierce pressing and dogged marking made them push their game a gear or two higher, and what we saw was two teams at their best producing a spectacle rarely seen in internationals. The game lacked goals, but made up for it with sheer quality and excitement.