With everything still to play for in Group C, there was no chance of Spain taking Croatia lightly in their final group game at the PGE Arena in Gdansk, Poland, despite being tipped as considerable favorites.

In a tournament already renowned for its display of good attacking football, a reversal in the trends of recent European Championships, it was with some surprise that both sides came out fairly conservative, with neither team fashioning any clear chances early on. The best chance should arguably have fallen to Mario Mandzukic, who seemed to be fouled inside the penalty box by Sergio Ramos, but referee Wolfgang Stark did not penalize the Spanish defender much to the ire of the Croatian team and fans.

A lack of urgency plagued the rest of the first half, but with news arriving just before half time that Italy had taken the lead against the Republic of Ireland, a result which, if this match remained a deadlock, would confine Spain to second place in the group and Croatia to an early trip home from the tournament, events were poised for a dramatic upturn in tempo in the second half.

The realization that they would be going out of the tournament seemed to sink in for the Croatians, and they began to show real attacking intent early in the second half. This in turn opened up the game for Spain, who were pushing hard for a goal and a return to the top of the group table, only to be repeatedly denied by fierce Croatian defending.

The best chance of the game so far fell to Ivan Rakitic in the 58th minute when Luka Modric galloped away from his man on the right wing and delivered a pinpoint cross for Rakitic who, despite being unmarked, could only direct his header straight at the waiting Iker Casillas.

Despite facing the prospect of finishing second in the group, and theoretically facing tougher opposition in the quarter-final stage of the tournament, Spain seemed hesitant to push too many players forward in search of a winning goal, preferring to remain defensively disciplined and limit Croatia’s chances as much as possible.

With the minutes running out, Croatia were beginning to throw everyone forward in an attempt to keep their Euro 2012 dream alive, but as is often the way late in games, they were caught on the counter by Spain and substitute Cesc Fabregas lifted the ball over the defensive line for Andres Iniesta, who drew the goalkeeper and slipped a pass to Jesus Navas for the Sevilla player to slip into the unguarded net.

The late goal secured the top spot for Spain, whilst a 2-0 victory for Italy over the Republic of Ireland gave them the second qualifying place, with both teams eager to find out who they will face in the quarter-finals. With both England and France in a position to qualify from Group D, along with co-hosts Ukraine, there is the potential for some mouth watering clashes between Europe’s elite in the next round and all eyes will be on the matches between England and Ukraine and France and Sweden to see who Spain and Italy will face next.

Image Courtesy of  Continental AG & Claudio Villa

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Tournament favorite and reigning World Champions, Spain, opened their Euro 2012 campaign against Italy in a highly anticipated match at the PGE arena in Gdansk, Poland.

Some eyebrows were raised over Spain’s decision to not select a traditional striker in their lineup, playing in a formation very similar to that of prestigious club side Barcelona. With five of their starting players also plying their trade for Barcelona, Spain looked comfortable early on in the unorthodox formation and controlled the tempo of the game well.

Italy’s formation was also under scrutiny, with Italian manager Cesare Prandelli opting to use midfielder Daniele De Rossi in the rarely used sweeper position. The decision seemed to pay off early in the game as, despite Spain’s domination of possession, the Italian defense held strong against several Spanish attacks.

The first real chance of the game fell to the Italians when Antonio Cassano timed his run perfectly to collect the ball and advance into the Spanish penalty area. Although his low shot beat the diving Iker Casillas, it also drifted just wide of the post. Spain hit back with a chance of their own. After their corner was cleared by the Italian defense, the ball fell to Andres Iniesta outside of the penalty area and the midfielder hit a fierce shot towards the bottom corner of the goal, forcing Gianluigi Buffon into a good save.

As the first half went on, Italy seemed to grow into the game, threatening the Spanish goal on several occasions. Most notable was a stinging volley from Claudio Marchisio that Casillas did well to hold on to. Spain, meanwhile, seemed unable to break down the Italian defense with their Barcelona-esque style of play. The presence of Barcelona players Iniesta, Xavi and Cesc Fabregas in the midfield was seemingly not enough to make up for the lack of a player of the caliber of Lionel Messi.

Spanish manager Vincente del Bosque would not have been pleased with the performance from his side at the half, with the Spaniards lucky to still be drawing 0-0 after Emanuele Giacherinni found Thiago Motta unmarked just eight yards out with a cross. His header was fired straight at Casillas and was not a problem for the Spanish goalkeeper.

Surprisingly, Spain did not bring on any of the three strikers on their bench during the interval, but the World Champions looked more threatening after the break with Fabreas testing Buffon early on. Minutes later, Iniesta seemed destined to score after breaking into the box, only for Buffon to get his fingertips to the ball and tip it wide for a corner.

With the game approaching the hour mark, controversial striker Mario Balotelli had the best opportunity to break the deadlock in the game thus far. Beating Sergio Ramos and progressing into the area unchallenged, he inexplicably held on to the ball for too long and allowed the recovering Ramos to get back and steal the ball from the Italian.

The lead was finally taken by Italy in the minute 60. Andrea Pirlo played a superb through ball for Antonio Di Natale, who was left one on one with Casillas and expertly curled his shot around the outstretched hands of the Spanish number one.

Clearly spurred on by the Italian goal, Spain struck back immediately, leveling the scores just two minutes later. Fabreas picked up a neat pass into the box from David Silva and smashed the ball beyond the reaches of Buffon, ensuring an exciting final 25 minutes.

The two goals certainly livened up the game, with both Fernando Torres and Sebastian Giovinco wasting good chances to give their sides the lead in the aftermath. Ultimately, neither side could find that bit extra to give themselves the three points.

Although Spain was favored going into the match, both sides will likely be content with the draw. Their remaining games, the Republic of Ireland and Croatia will likely pose less of a challenge than their opponents today. Spain and del Bosque will have to analyze whether their decision to play without a traditional striker was the right one before the next match, whilst Prandelli and Italy will be thrilled they defied expectations in avoiding defeat to the Spanish. He will want to see more of the same from his team in training if they are to continue in this form.

Image Courtesy of  Michael Steele

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The current Champions League holders drew a blank on Italian soil, as both teams failed to break down stubborn defenses in Milan. Barcelona will hold a slight advantage with the second leg at the Nou Camp, but on a night with few chances, Milan will be disappointed it didn’t make it count.

It was a frantic start. Barcelona looked half asleep, as it gifted the ball to Milan in the opening minutes, culminating in a great chance for Boateng, and an even better chance for Robinho, who volleyed over from no more than six yards. But Lionel Messi was beginning to get into his stride, testing Abbiati from the edge of the box and inter-linking nicely with his teammates.

Last year’s winners had a big appeal for a penalty turned down, when Alexis Sanchez was brought down by Abbiati after a neatly worked free-kick, but the referee waved the shouts away. Barcelona was getting on top though, and had a goal disallowed for offside minutes later, when Messi went too early to meet a Dani Alves cross.

Milan wasn’t taking the pressure lying down though, and almost went ahead, as the ex-Barcelona striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic ran through on goal but was denied by Victor Valdes. It was a typically fraught encounter between two attack-minded teams, but the away side definitely had the upper hand, as Milan failed to keep possession regularly enough to pose a threat.

The game was evenly poised as half-time approached, the world champions Barcelona threatened with no end product, whilst Milan had the odd opportunity on the counter-attack, but couldn’t find a route to goal.

The second half started much like the first had ended: Barcelona was doing most of the pressing, but Milan had to make a change when Robinho fell awkwardly and was replaced by El Shaarawy. Guardiola was beginning to grow frustrated by the lack of chances being created, and took Andres Iniesta off for youngster Cristian Tello, in hopes of getting a crucial away goal.

Urby Emanuelson was also thrown into the action with twenty minutes to go, and instead of the game becoming stretched, defenses tightened, as Milan looked even more likely to sit back and soak up the pressure, frustrating Barcelona further, as the 2011 winners failed to find a way through the stubborn defense.

As the clock ticked down, so did the chances of either team grabbing a crucial lead to take back to Spain. Messi came closest, forcing a good save from Abbiati, and Tello was denied by a last ditch block from Ambrosini, with the goal gaping. There were no more clear-cut chances, and the referee brought time on an anti-climactic second half, as both teams prepare to do it all again in Barcelona next week.

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As expected, Spanish giants Barcelona cruised to a predictable, if somewhat unimpressive, win over Viktoria Plzen, recording a 2-0 score line over the Czech side, and strengthening their position in the battle with AC Milan for top spot in the group. The breakthrough came early for Barcelona, and was the result of excellent play from Argentinian superstar Lionel Messi.

The little maestro played a delicate ball into the box and to the feet of the waiting Andres Iniesta, who then calmly placed the ball into the bottom right hand corner of the net, to the delight of the home crowd.

Despite enjoying near total domination over the visitors, Barca were unable to add their solitary goal in the first half, however the performances of players such as Messi, Iniesta and David Villa indicated that it was surely just a matter of time before they added to their lead after the interval.

Whilst Barca were enjoying a pass success rate of 93% and a total of 14 shots to Plzen’s 0, halfway through the second half, they were still unable to extend their lead over the visitors. Despite no change to the score line, home and visiting fans alike were treated to a show of exquisite football from Messi, with the player exhibiting his full range of tricks, nutmegs, and deft touches.

If Messi’s triumphant display wasn’t enough for Barca fans, Villa soon gave them something to cheer about with his side’s second goal of the game. Messi collected a neat through ball from Villa, and when tackled by the Plzen centre-back, the ball bobbled loose to the onrushing Villa who calmly stroked the ball into the bottom corner of the goal.

The home side came close to adding a third when Pedro broke into the box and instead of attempting a shot himself, passed the ball onto Villa, but the attacker did not have the pace to get to the ball in time, and the attack fizzled out.

Whilst many will be disappointed to not have seen Barcelona score more than their two goals tonight, the game was never in doubt, and Pep Guardiola will be happy enough with his team’s overall performance, if not with their ability to finish off chances.

The win does however keep them level with AC Milan at the top of the group, and sets up a match against the Italian side which will most likely decide the winner of the group.

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