Well... we tried. We did all we could, but ultimately, the better team won. To be perfectly fair, Italy have had an immense EUROS, and fully deserve it. I'm still really proud of the England squad, too.
I was mixed going into the game. My prediction actually was an England Italy final, and with all the build-up, and the Wembley setting, filled with English fans; over-capacity, in fact (more on that at the end) I was shyly confident of an England win. But there was no denying the strength of the Italians and the route they'd taken to get to this point, which was arguably a tougher ask than us.
When we scored 2 mins in I was thinking "Wow, I think we have this in the bag" and given how we started from the off, I was more and more confident. The first half was undoubtedly ours, we looked energetic across the whole system and capitalized early, catching Italy out with the early goal, which is never easy to do against a team with a glimmering defensive record. From there we sat back and kept possession, just looking to stay away from the Italy press and keep our lead with cautious build up.
If anything we played a little bit too cautiously, when maybe we should have been looking for more goals at the peak of our strength. It didn't help that our attackers were largely phased out by a magnificent Italian defense. Our entire forward line of Mount, Sterling and Kane all registered 0 shots on target, which is an absolutely crazy statistic, and just proves the strength of the Azzurri.
 |
| “Leonardo Bonucci and Giorgio Chiellini... they could go to Harvard University to give classes about how to be a central defender. They’re quality. When I say quality I don't just say creative players. Chiellini-Bonucci, it’s absolutely beautiful to see” - Jose Mourinho, 2018 |
Chiellini and Bonucci formed a rock solid partnership in the Italian back 4; they were key in keeping a draw in the semi-final against Spain, and they did the same in the final. Sterling, who otherwise has had a solid tournament, found gaps in behind the defense rarely, and couldn't create much when inside the Italian box, either running the ball out of play completely or having a pass or shot intercepted.
Kane seemed to act as a target man, and was the target for long balls from deep, which he could head down to on-runners. Though, Bonucci had him covered excellently, and we struggled to move the ball from Kane forwards to any opportunities. It felt like the only time Kane got near Donnarumma's net was during the penalty shootout.
Mount is a player I was expecting to have more of an impact than he did, and I was hoping he would get more out of the Euros than just an assist from a corner, especially in the final where he played a similar position to his role at Chelsea. He had the least touches out of any England outfield player, and while he had hints of creativity, almost connecting with Sterling in the box, nothing worked.
So, how were we meant to move the ball upwards into the Italian half without being blocked out? Well, Declan Rice, in the minutes he was on the pitch, had an outstanding game, and looked to drive the ball up the pitch quickly, brushing past the Italian midfield with ease before picking out a pass. Of course, this never came to anything, as we never managed to net a second, but the confidence and energy that Rice was playing with was really refreshing to watch, and I really wish he could have stayed on for longer. He did look tired when coming off, which might have been the reason for his departure, but regardless, he had a great game.
 |
Italy's pressing in the second half was the key to their dominance and the equalizer. I felt we were almost too comfortable after our first goal, and when Mancini started ringing changes, and the Italians began to get more into the game, we lost our first half energy and allowed them to play their fast tiki-taka football, which they've had so much success with in this tournament.
Southgate's tactics also seemed to be to keep back subs until the last minute, and obviously he kept back two players fresh for a penalty shootout. Italy on the other hand had spread their changes, bringing on their first at the beginning of the second half, and continuing to switch after they had grabbed their equalizer. Part of me wishes we had made more subs in regular time, to try and push through for a second goal, which might have ended up being the winner.
We can argue about penalty choices long after the game, and I certainly had doubts about it after the game. In truth penalties are unpredictable, and never, ever an easy thing to do. Even the most experienced penalty takers miss penalties (see Jorginho). so the last thing I'm going to do is heap blame on an England player for missing a penalty. We did all we could, and that's that. Saka had the entire countries weight placed on his shoulders, and it was a shame for him after his top quality Euro's performance
Italy outclassed us in practically all departments of the game, and they already had a penalty shootout victory against Spain, so a part of me knew we would struggle. Donnarumma is a class keeper, and a towering presence in goal, which is really what you need in a shootout.
I've also gained tons of respect for Jordan Pickford, absolutely class act and had a great tournament overall, grabbing the golden glove with 5 clean sheets out of 7 games and only two goals conceded. I was absolutely buzzing when he pushed the Jorginho penalty onto the post, and he made some solid saves in the game as well.
Finally, I know it's everywhere on social media currently, and actions speak much louder than words, so I'll keep it brief, but it was really disappointing to see videos of violence, racism and discrimination from England fans, all while we were playing in our first international final since 1966. What impresses me and relieves me is the players and their professional, mature responses to all of this, every time it happens. They understand that this will take a lot of time to improve, but stay resolute throughout it all. All we can do is report these fans and make them aware that they are not part of us.
Overall, whats important is how much we've learned as a team, and as a group, and hopefully we can build on it, and take that hunger to the World Cup next year. I'm still optimistic as an England fan and I'm eager to see how we improve further.