Five things we learnt from Spain 1-0 Italy

Spain confirmed their progression to the Euro 2024 knockout stages on Thursday as they cruised to a 1-0 victory over Italy, producing a display which was far more assured than the scoreline may suggest.

A Riccardo Calafiori own goal made the difference as Spain dominated the Azzurri but struggled to find a way past Gianluigi Donnarumma, who produced a vintage performance between the sticks for Italy.

Here are five things we learnt from a truly fascinating match.

Spain blunt the cutting edge that carved up Croatia

In their first group-stage match, Spain were ruthless. They tore Croatia limb from limb on their way to a 3-0 victory, but failed to have that same effect against Italy.

This is cause for concern. Despite creating a huge amount of chances, the deadlock would not be broken until Riccardo Calafiori turned an aimless cross into his own net. While Donnarumma played a typically impressive match, Spain created three big chances, failing to capitalise on any of them. The squad clearly has the quality to make a serious push for the title this summer, but La Roja need to tighten up and take their chances if they are to fulfil their potential.

Cucurella impresses again after difficult league campaign

Chelsea’s Marc Cucurella endured a difficult Premier League season, missing time due to injury and struggling to maintain a spot in the starting lineup when fit. That was until the final month of the season, when he began to play as an inverted fullback and came into his own, becoming a crucial part of The Blue’s late push for European qualification.

He has carried that form into Spain’s Euro 2024 campaign without skipping a beat, becoming one of the most important members of the squad in both attack and defence. Against Italy, he locked down the left flank, recording a 100% pass completion rate and creating three chances while also taking care of Federico Chiesa.

Cucu will surely remain a key player in Spain’s campaign as La Roja prepare for the knockout stages.

Italy continue to struggle…

The Azzurri seem to be in the throes of an identity crisis. Given a squad flush with talent, manager Luciano Spalletti does not seem to know how to manage the players it has, offering another toothless display against Spain after struggling to an uninspired 2-1 defeat of Albania.

This Italy team is unrecognisable from the one which lifted the Euros trophy at Wembley Stadium in 2021. Despite the skill on display, there are no standout stars, as the likes of Chiesa, Nicolò Barella, and Riccardo Calafiori struggled to have any influence over the match.

With one match remaining in the group stages, nothing is secure for Italy. To go home early would be a huge disappointment if an unlikely one, but there is plenty of improvement to be made before moving on to bigger tests.

…But Donnarumma will be the Azzurri’s saving grace

Paris Saint-Germain’s Gianluigi Donnarumma is beyond words. His performance in goal was the only bright point of Italy’s day, putting up eight saves and preventing 0.89xG worth of goals.

Quite simply, he did everything right, and could not have done anything differently to prevent the one goal conceded which was unfortunate, to say the least.

While this Italy side can be difficult to watch, it is oftentimes worth tuning in just to watch Donnarumma make some incredible saves.

Own goals are dominating the Golden Boot charge

Calafiori’s 55th-minute deflection into his own net made for the fifth own goal of Euro 2024, three more goals than any one player has managed thus far.

It is tricky to say what this means for the state of the tournament, if anything. Are defenders making more mistakes? Is it a product of the more attack-focused nature of tournament football?

While a cause or effect is tough to ascertain, the pattern is starting to become a trend which fans should keep an eye on as the summer progresses.

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