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Italy maintained their winning record at Euro 2020 with an impressive 2-1 win over the No. 1-ranked team in the world Belgium.
The Italians appeared to have gotten off to the perfect start in the 13th minute when Leonardo Bonucci wheeled away in celebration with the ball in the back of the net. Bonucci appeared to have bundled Lorenzo Insigne's free kick over the line but after a VAR review, the goal was ruled offside.
Kevin De Bruyne's fantastic play is a big reason why Belgium have a 100% record, at Euro 2020, including against Portugal last time out. He was once again a threat in the early stages of the game.
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After cutting in from the right and working the ball onto his left foot, De Bruyne's powerful shot forced Gianluigi Donnarumma into a fantastic diving save. Donnarumma had a great showing in the first half and was once again equal to the strike when he got low to deny Romelu Lukaku's well-placed effort.
Italy, however, have been in fine form at Euro 2020. They put three goals past both Turkey and Switzerland, and once again showed their class here. In the 31st minute, Nicolo Barella received a pass from Marco Veratti in the Belgium box. However, being surrounded by defenders, there was no clear path to goal.
Barella somehow danced between the opposition defenders before thumping home a shot from an angle to give Italy a 1-0 lead in the Euro 2020 quarter-finals. Things got even better for the Italians in the 44th minute thanks to some magic from Insigne.
Having picked the ball up inside his own half, Insigne beat his man, cut inside and launched a beautiful curling strike from outside the box that flew into the top right corner. While the strike gave Italy a commanding lead, there was still another twist to come in the first period.
Two minutes into stoppage time, Jeremy Doku was brought down by Giovani Di Lorenzo in the box to give Belgium a penalty. Lukaku stepped up and sent Donnarumma the wrong way to reduce the deficit and set the game up nicely for the second half.
The second half continued to see Doku cause problems for Italy down the left. After one passage of play, Doku played in De Bruyne, who expertly squared it for Lukaku only for the big man to hit the outside of the post with the goal gaping.
Lukaku would again come inches away from leveling Friday's Euro 2020 clash when Nacer Chadli's deflected cross went narrowly over his head before being cleared.
While Belgium continued to press and Doku continued to threaten, they were unable to get the goal they needed and the game finished 2-1. Next up for Italy is a massive semi-final clash against Spain at Euro 2020.
