I haven’t been getting carried away about what might happen in this evening’s match as I certainly don’t consider it a given that we’re going to win. Italy looked great in the only Euro match I’ve seen them in, against Belgium, but by all accounts Spain got the better of them for much of the semi-final and I think we could do the same. We can certainly defend, as our record in this tournament shows, and we have a number of very creative players who can serve our prolific strikers. I reckon it’ll go to extra-time and maybe penalties but I think we’re going to get a narrow win one way or the other. If it does go to pennas, you’ve got to fancy Pickford to stop one or two. I’ll be with my bubble in Fitzie’s and I’m looking forward to a great session.
When I got to the pub just over an hour before kick-off, it was a lot fuller than on Wednesday but we had a table with a great view and at a safe distance from everyone else. My fellow bubblers were feeling more optimistic about our chances and predicted 2-1. 2-1, 2-1 after extra-time and 3-1. As far as I could see, Trippier was the only change from the semi-final. As we watched a montage of previous World Cup/Euro moments my mate exploded at one point, “I still detest Maradona because of that. Hand of God, my arse! Hand of a twat!” I didn’t know we were having a closing ceremony with all that dancing etc but it was brief anyway. About the same time there was a great roar from the table in front of us, maybe because it was ten minutes to kick-off or maybe because they’d spotted the first of many bowls of chips heading their way. Many of them joined in with ‘God save the Queen’ but nobody else did. And so to the match…
Italy won a corner in the second minute but we cleared it and counter-attacked swiftly. The ball was fed to Trippier on the right and he made a great cross to the on-running Shaw who lashed it past the almost stationary Donnarumma to put us into the lead. Cue much screaming and leaping about in the bar. Four minutes later Shaw conceded a free-kick near the right angle of our box but Insigne’s kick went wide. We looked threatening every time we went forward and Italy looked very vulnerable down our right. We were looking good in all departments and I could see us getting another goal before long. Italy were down to ten men at the half-way mark when Jorginho went off for a while. We looked very confident in defence and Pickford had had very little to do so far. Around the half-hour mark Italy started to get a lot of possession but they weren’t doing much with it. “Meaningless possession,” my mate called it. Chiesa made a good run and shot not far wide of the right post but that was about their most dangerous effort so far. Next thing Shaw did great to get a low pass into their box from the left but it was cleared for a throw. Italy were doing most of the pressing as half-time approached but we still looked more dangerous on the break. There were four minutes of stoppage-time during which Pickford made a save of sorts – cue a chant in the pub of, “Jordan Pickford – he’s one of our own.” It remained 1-0 as the whistle went. So far, so good.
In the pub spirits were high as we kicked off again. Barella was soon yellow-carded for a foul on Kane and then Sterling went down in the box but the ref was having none of it and the replay suggested he was right. Very soon Sterling conceded a free-kick just outside our box but thankfully Insigne hit it just wide. In the fifty-fourth minute Italy made their first changes bringing on Cristante for Barella and Berardi for Immobile, which was a bit of a shame as I was hoping to get an immobile joke in there somewhere. A few minutes Pickford made his first real save with a great block but Italy were having far too much of the ball for my liking. Shortly afterwards he had to make a great diving save to his left and he didn’t look too pleased with his defence. Next thing a Mount header from a corner was tipped over for a second corner and that brought some relief. In the sixty-seventh minute Italy were level when Bonucci forced it home from very close range after the ball had hit our left post. It was more than about time for a change or two and we soon replaced Trippier with Saka. There were cheers in the bar in the seventy-third minute as we spotted Hendo getting ready to come on and he duly did for Rice. Italy were well on top, though. Chiesa went down injured for several minutes but after going off briefly he returned to the field to much booing. We finally put some pressure on them for a change and I was pleased to see Chiesa being subbed by Bernardeschi as he’d been a thorn in our side. Unsurprisingly there were six minutes of stoppage-time and that news was well-received in the pub but it remained 1-1 when the whistle went and we were into extra-time.
Italy had the better of the early exchanges but following a corner Philips had a low shot that went not too far wide. It lifted our spirits at any rate. Spirits were further lifted when Grealish came on for Mount and he could be just the man to create a goal for us. He immediately wove a bit of magic in their box but Saka couldn’t control it properly and the chance was wasted. The fans in the stadium were giving plenty of support as we kicked off for the final time but we very soon conceded a free-kick in a dodgy place. Pickford made a good stop and managed to grab the rebound before any Italian player could get to it. It was going from end to end and in the pub at one point the only words I could hear were, “Twat!” and “Cunt!” Five minutes in, we started to enjoy a great attacking period and I thought Jorginho was lucky to escape with just a yellow when he stamped all over Grealish. Just before the end we brought on Rashford and Sancho for Hendo and Walker no doubt with an eye on the penalty shoot-out. There were still a further three minutes of stoppage-time in extra-time and I could have done without that as I reckoned we could win on penalties. It ended 1-1.
And so we came to penalties. Berardi sent Pickford the wrong way for 1-0 and then Kane slammed one in for us – 1-1. Bellotti took the second for Italy and Jordan saved it. The pub went ape-shite. Maguire blasted the next in and it was 2-1. Bonucci made it 2-2. Rashford took our next and after much farting around he lit the post and it remained 2-2. Bernardeschi made it 3-2 to them and then Sancho’s shot was saved by Donnarumma. Jorginho took their next and Jordan saved it but then Saka took out last and it was saved so that was that and Italy had won. Our two late subs both failed to score. There was not surprisingly an immediate subdued mood in the pub.
