The European championships have concluded and what a stunning tournament it was, with Italy going onto lift the title, following a near flawless performance throughout. It was an incredibly popular betting event, with punters using the Ladbrokes new customer offers across the championships, as Italy had started just outside the favourites but had still come in for support based on their unbeaten run heading into the event.
Italy are Euro 2020 winners! 🇮🇹
The wait to win silverware goes on for England… 💔
📲📺 Watch: https://t.co/1B3NJIoRkX#bbceuro2020 #Euro2020Final #ITAENG pic.twitter.com/KyHvOUEAYb
— BBC Sport (@BBCSport) July 11, 2021
Italy ended up going through the entire recent European championships without defeat, which means they are now 34 matches unbeaten across three years. A remarkable achievement, which also means they are now just one match shy of equalling the record set and they will be expected to now go and surpass the records set. This is an incredible turn around for a side that had failed to qualify for the last World Cup in Russia back in 2018 and changes needed to be made. This has now taken place and has clearly worked, and it has resulted in them really proving a tough side to beat, which was shown across the recent European championships.
Italy progressed through into the knockout stages of the tournament, with three straight victories. This included a 3-0 win over both Turkey and Switzerland and a further 1-0 victory over Wales. It set to up well for the round of 16, which saw them taking on Austria. They were the overwhelming favourites but struggled throughout and Austria scored late, which appeared to be sending Italy out of the tournament. However, the goal was ruled out and Italy then went onto up their game in extra-time and ultimately progressed through. Belgium was next up for Italy in the quarter-finals and it was one of the games of the tournament. Italy produced potentially their best performance, as they progressed through with an impressive 2-1 victory.
The semi-finals were next, and it was Spain. The latter were much the better team and produced lots of chances, but Italy as always proved to be such a tough side to not only score against but beat. The match ended up going to penalties and it was Italy who delt with the pressure best and progressed through to the final with a 4-2 victory on the spot kicks. The final then saw them take on England at Wembley, where they went in as the underdogs. England scored after just two minutes, and it appeared it could be there night. However, Italy really turned the game around and equalised before it then went through to penalties. Italy again held their nerve and won 3-2 in the shoot-out to come out as deserved winners and pick up the second European title in the nation’s history.
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