Image courtesy of Wikipedia.
Due to a great left-footed volley by David Villa in the 77th minute, Spain defeated the Azzurri, 1 x 0.
It was a spirited game played under very windy conditions at Elche, which is near Alicante. In the 12th minute, an apparent goal headed in by Luca Toni was whistled offsides. Mauro Camoranesi created a few other chances, and in the 51st minute, from a very precise cross by Fabio Grosso, he beat Iker Casillas with a first time strike but not the crossbar.
Overall, a good effort by the Azzurri against one of the favorites at Euro 2008. They could meet in the quarterfinal round.
To read a more detailed game report, please visit mCalcio by Marco Pantanella. It is a great site about Italian football.
Italy has two more friendlies scheduled against Croatia and Hungary, respectively, before Euro 2008 begins in early June.
Notes
- Fabio Cannavaro made his 115th appearance for Italy.
- It was a rare friendly that featured two captains (Cannavaro and Casillas) who play for the same team, Real Madrid.
- Spain extended its unbeaten streak to 14 games. They have won 12 in that period.
- Mister Donadoni, according to RAI, has used 59 different players during his tenure.
