EURO 2008: Italy vs. Netherlands (Running Commentary)

Good afternoon folks. The first high-profile match of the European Championships is set to kickoff with Italy facing the Netherlands in Group C action.

Both teams come into the match dealing with injury issues. Italy lost Fabio Cannavaro while the Dutch lost Ryan Babel and will be without Arjen Robben for this match.

Two of the best goalkeepers in the world square off as Gianluigi Buffon and Edwin Van Der Sar match skills. They should both be tested by some talented forwards in Italy's Luca Toni and the Netherlands' Ruud van Nistelrooy.

I will be providing running commentary on the match so feel free to share your own thoughts and opinions on the match in the comments section below.

Enjoy the match.

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FINAL- That's all from me today. Thanks for following along on the commentary.

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FINAL- NETHERLANDS 3, ITALY 0. The Dutch dominate, the Italians struggle and the Group of Death has been shaken to its core. Between this and the France-Romania tie, things in Group C have gotten VERY interesting, as we expected.

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92nd minute- This one is all but over as Italy doesn't look likely to find a consolation goal.

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86th minute- So what lineup changes can we expect from Italy for game two against Romania? Give me Del Piero and De Rossi for Pirlo and Ambrosini or Gattuso.

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81st minute- Italy came inches away from pulling back to 2-1 and just seconds later it's 3-0 and over. Great stuff from the Dutch today.

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80th minute- Another great counterattack from the Dutch. Pirlo has a beautiful free kick saved by a great Van Der Sar save and the Dutch break out on the counter. Buffon makes his own wonderful save, but the rebound sets up van Brockhort's header. Netherlands 3, Italy 0. WOW.

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79th minute- GOAL NETHERLANDS. VAN BROCKHORTS!!!!! WOW

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78th minute- SAVE VAN DER SAR. Fabio Grosso breaks in on goal and sends a close-range shot at goal but VDS makes the save. WOW

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76th minute- Toni wastes a wide open look, he rushed a chip with Van Der Sar running at him. GREAT pass from Cassano. What a waste. That was probably it for Italy.

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75th minute- The linesman blows a bad offside call against the Dutch, could have led to a goal there.

Cassano on for Ambrosini.

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74th minute- Good point by the ESPN guys. How does Daniele DeRossi not start for Italy? The AC Milan trio just look a step slow and DeRossi is an animal.

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73rd minute- Antonio Cassano is coming in. I like his inclusion.

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71st minute- Robin Van Persie in for van Nistelrooy. Interesting sub.

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70th minute- Del Piero misses a great chance there. Wow. That's as good as it has been for Italy all day.

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69th minute- Dutch with a long-range free kick. Let's see what this will be.

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65th minute- A two-goal deficit is a steep hill to climb but we must remember that goal difference will matter in Group C so even one goal back will help Italy here.

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64th minute- Pirlo's free kick goes for goal but he sends it wide.

Here comes Del Piero.

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62nd minute- Gattuso got lucky not to get a second yellow card, his sly smile at the ref said it all.

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57th minute- Better from Italy now as they have started to control possession. The Dutch look to be slowing down.

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55th minute- Fabio Grosso is in for Materazzi, looks like we'll see a 3-5-2 from Italy now. Not sure if that will help the attack enough.

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54th minute- Zambrotta sends a dangerous ball in, but the angle on his shot is too sharp. When will we see Alessandro Del Piero?

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52nd minute- Still waiting for something tangible in the Italian attack. Nothing much from a team losing by two goals. The Dutch is still attacking and don't look likely to blow this lead.

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47th minute- Italy starts out with a half chance but nothing comes of the possession or corner kick.

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46th minute-  And we are back.

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HALFTIME- Netherlands 2, Italy 0. The Dutch are dominating and Italy looks nothing like World Cup champions.

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45th minute- Wow, DiNatale came close with a blast, but missed a foot high.

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45th minute- Italy just looks flat out old today. The midfield is being thoroughly outplayed and I'm not sure where Roberto Donadoni will go for inspiration.

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43rd minute- SAVE BUFFON. Van Nistelrooy had a clear look but Buffon makes the crucial save.

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37th minute- I have to admit that the Dutch have come out much sharper and stronger than I would have thought they would come out this tournament. I didn't have them qualifying in this group but they look poised to win it if this result holds. Quality stuff.

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34th minute- What a beautiful counterattack on the Dutch second goal.

DiNatale forces a great save from Van Der Sar.

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31st minute- GOAL NETHERLANDS!!!!! Wesley Sneijder with the second goal. WOW, what a sequence.

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30th minute- Now the Italians will need attack more than usual, which should hopefully lead to a more entertaining match. They're looking a bit patient right now. Still plenty of time left.

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28th minute- An Italian defender had gone off the field behind the goal on the Dutch score. Not sure if that somehow kept Van Nistelrooy on. If not, there was nobody else close to van Nistelrooy.

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26th minute- GOAL NETHERLANDS!!! Ruud van Nistelrooy redirects a long-range shot past Buffon. Looked offside at first look.

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25th minute- The Dutch are pressing, sending two balls into the area and both are dealt with by the Italian defense. The Dutch need to test Buffon with a shot.

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23rd minute- Pirlo wastes a long free kick by striking it too hard and out of bounds.

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21st minute- Italy staying compact and not really pressing the Dutch defense as the Dutch have had more possession so far.

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18th minute- Wow, Van Nistelrooy breaks into the area and stumbles after dodging an on-running Buffon but he can't get to the ball in time. Nice pass from Kuyt to Ruud.

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15th minute- The Dutch are knocking it around, but not really pressing in the final third.

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13th minute- Toni with a clear header from close but couldn't get it on frame. Quality build-up from Italy there.

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11th minute- Sneijder's free kick hits Andre Ooijer in the back. Van Der Vaart follows shortly after with a hard shot but Buffon smothers it.

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10th minute- Van Der Vaart with a beautiful touch past Italy's midfield but Gattuso takes him down. Van Nistelrooy is taken down by Gattuso a minute later, setting up a dangerous free kick.

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9th minute- There's a stat. Italy hasn't lost the opening match of a tournament since losing to Ireland at World Cup '94. Nice blast from the past with that fact.

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5th minute- Camoranesi with the first dive of the match. Well, it was a foul but he definitely made a meal of it.

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4th minute- Italy looks sharp early, looking like the aggressor to start the match.

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1st minute- And we're off.

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PRE-GAME- Barzagli gets the call ahead of Chiellini to start. It will be interesting to see how Materazzi does without Cannavaro next to him to give him good cover.

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PRE-GAME- The Italian national anthem has just finished and I couldn't help but remember that anthem before the USA-Italy World Cup match two years ago. What a game that was. Hopefully this match is half as memorable.

Comments

[Dominghosa]

A contrast of styles.
Oranje vs. Azzuri.
Van der Sar vs. Buffon.
Ruud vs. Luca.
Style vs. Substance.

Italy will bunker down to hinder the Dutch offense. Italy's counter attacks will win the day, 2-1.

[eric]

Hard to believe Luca Toni only has 34 caps at age 31. Alright, over my striker envy. Go Holland!

[ManicMessiah]

Despite the fact that Dirk Kuyt is being played on the right of midfield, I'll be rooting for the Durch.

[eric]

Like all the cool kids these days, both teams are pretty much playing a 4-2-3-1

Holland: Van der Sar, Ooijer, Boulahrouz, Mathijsen, Van Bronckhorst, Kuyt, De Jong, Van der Vaart, Engelaar, Sneijder and van Nistelrooy. (Subs: Timmer, Stekelenburg, Heitinga, De Zeeuw, Van Persie, Robben, Melchiot, Bouma, De Cler, Huntelaar, Afellay and Vennegoor of Hesselink.)

Italy: Buffon, Panucci, Barzagli, Materazzi, Zambrotta, Ambrosini, Pirlo, Gattuso, Camoranesi, Toni and Di Natale. (Subs: Amelia, De Sanctis, Grosso, Chiellini, Gamberini, Del Piero, De Rossi, Borriello, Quagliarella, Cassano, Perrotta and Aquilani.)

[KC]

If I didn't have to work tonight I'd have my own drinking game and take a shot everytime the Italians take a dive and act like they've been gunned down. I'd probably be drunk before the half.

[eric]

Great ball skills on display from both sides early on. I'm not sure why Gattuso is the automatic choice over De Rossi.

I'm not as into Healey and Gray as commentators as many of y'all are. I like what they say better, but I think they say way too much. You never hear a second of the crowd and game with these guys.

[eric]

At a boy Ruud, way to follow the play and keep the pressure on, with bonus points for not going down. Amazing! When you don't fall over, you can play soccer.

[KC]

Had Van Nistelroy been Italian he'd still be writhing in pain on the ground.

[ManicMessiah]

big credit to Van Nistelrooy for not going down on that play by Buffon.

[ManicMessiah]

A Shocking offside decision leads to Van Nistelrooy giving the Oranje a 1-0 lead!

[eric]

I'm sitting here in my ragged Holland '98 t-shirt feeling a little guilty. But I tell myself that soccer is the winner, it's always better to watch when you make Italy have to score.

[KC]

I still can't believe that no-call...is this an MLS ref?

[eric]

Great call Ives! One of the defenders challenged for a header on the touchline to the left of goal, and decided to go to ground. That has to keep the attacker on sides.

[RS]

Wouldn't the injured guy who just fell off the pitch count since he literally fell off the field a few seconds before the goal? If that isn't the case, the last defender could use that as a strategy and jump off the back of the field to try and get someone offsides, right?

[KC]

AMAZING! What a sequence and what a goal!

[Dominghosa]

Wow, I got that the other way around.

[Ted]

Oranje!

[ManicMessiah]

No doubt whether or not Sneijder was onsides as he drills home a crossed ball. Beautiful counterattack, 2-0 Holland!!!

[RS]

Dammit!! Ives beat me to it as I was typing my message. I think that is the case, making the goal legit I guess.

[ManicMessiah]

You make a convinving point, RS.

[KC]

Maybe you are right RS, I've never seen a similar situation before. Doesn't matter though, it's on the scoreboard.

[ManicMessiah]

No Van Persie? No Robben? No problem.

[eric]

That Sneijder goal was like Stephen Chow, Shaolin Soccer all the way!

[William the Terror]

Go, Oranje!!!!!!!!!

They are vindicating my choice of Holland to win it all. 2-0. This is about the point that the Ities generally start to play dirty. Expect a lot of fouls and diving from the Azzuri from this point on.

Hup, Holland!!!

[HomeyBoehme]

Yay Netherlands. I enjoyed Amsterdam much more than Rome when I visited. And I can not forgive the elbow to McBride's face, nor the diving shammockery in the game vs. Australia. I hope Italy goes out in the first round. Hopefully beaten by both France and Romania. 4th place you diving cheats! HA!

[ManicMessiah]

Van Nistelrooy nearly made it 3-0. Beautiful ball in to him, and if he puts it anywhere else he would have scored it.

[HomeyBoehme]

boy do I want to see the Italians go behind by 3 or 4 goals! That would just make my day.

[ricecloudnine]

The Italian player who fell across the endline kept van Nistelrooy onside. From Advice to Referees 11.11:

"A defender who leaves the field during the course of play and does not immediately return must still be considered in determining where the second to last defender is for the purpose of judging which attackers are in an offside position. Such a defender is considered to be on the touch line or goal line closest to his or her off-field position. A defender who leaves the field with the referee's permission (and who thus requires the referee's permission to return) is not included in determining offside position."

[RS]

It is bothering me that i can think of this sitting on my couch watching the game yet none of these people on ESPN2 seem to realize it. Kind of annoying...

[eric]

yeah RS, i was going to say that

[AllNats]

I just looked it up in the Laws of the Game. The rule on offsides doesn't say anthing about the defender having to be on the field. Unless there is something in another section I missed, I'm pretty sure that was a correct non-call.

[KC]

Great find ricecloudnine...that answers it and makes the ESPN2 crew look like idiots, you can't tell me they don't have the resources to find the correct answer. Ives you write for ESPN give Foudy a call...haha

[Sam]

This is actually a scenario we discuss when training young, entry level referees. The man outside of the touch line is considered to be on the touch line in offering an offside call. Does anyone at ESPN have access to a referee to offer this counsel. They keep claiming it was a blown call, both the commentators and the halftime crew.

[Dillon]

Nice post ricecloudnine. Anyone who has taken a referees course knows that is a totally legit goal.

[ricecloudnine]

Those on the ESPN2 crew are part of the reason why I have parents, players and coaches complaining at me when I'm reffing games. Not always knowing the interpretation of all the rules... :P

[Brant]

Sadly, I'm stuck at work, so I can check in on my Slingbox every now and then, but if I leave it running, IT comes and hollers at me for choking up the network.

Not only do I hope Holland throttles Italy (2 more! c'mon, 2 more!) I hope everyone else does, too. I want Italy to crash out at 0-3 with a goal differential of -11 and no goals scored. Call it revenge for Kaiserslautern.

Go Oranje!

[Sam]

I hear you ricecloudnine.

[Drew D (From FL)]

Funny thing to note: Julie Foudy hates tommy smyth. Smyth has cut her off every chance he has gotten and you can tell she is starting to look pissed lol.

[KC]

Well I guess its not a situation that happens very often when you have former players and veteran announcers getting it wrong. I thought it was a bad call too at first, now I know I was wrong.

[eric]

Ah man, beautiful stuff from the Dutch, great control on the ball.

[HomeyBoehme]

Thanks for the clarification on why VanNistelroy was onside. Again, Italy being punished for falling on the ground instead of playing soccer.

And regarding the commentators, Ives, you work for ESPN. You have to have some influence on getting "The Old Onionbag" fired. He averages about 1 referee complaint every 5 minutes during the game. And it sounds like he's yelling all the time. Crotchity old man, and not a pleasant voice to listen to.

[Brant]

I think Tommy is probably trying to figure out why there's a girl sharing his stage with him to talk about a guy's event... He's a little old-school that way.
Personally, I think we could find 3-4 better-looking women to put in the booth to annoy Tommy, if that's all we're doing.

[Brant]

The Italian Olympic diving team has taken to the field, dressed as a soccer squad, in a tuen-up for Beijing before the assembled crowds of Euro 2008.

[HomeyBoehme]

@brant - lol x2

[ricecloudnine]

Ref letting a lot more go by... needs to hope things don't get out of control.

[eric]

If VDS was beaten by that freekick, he'd be furious at the defender out front who ducked out of the way of that shot, it was his job to make the near post harder to shoot at.

[ManicMessiah]

The ref has been letting quite a bit go in this match, which is much better than the card fest we had at world cup 2006.

[Brant]

thanks homey.

this zinger from The Guardian is the best I've seen yet today:
++++++++++++++++
"It was good to see Dirk Kuyt attempt to dribble and control tbe ball just now, but instead succeed only in falling over," chortles George Templedon. "Nice to know that training with Dutch team hasn't ruined him."
++++++++++++++++

[Brant]

I wish the Dutch would break out a bit more, they look too content turtling in back there.

And.... as I say that they clearly got my memo and started a nice build-up that (surprise, surprise) results in a hacking challenge from the Italian hit-squad, er... "defense".

[Brant]

If the Italians coulld swarm on offense like they do on defense, it would get very ugly for a lot of teams very quickly.

[eric]

Van Der Sar looking positively Howard like!

[ManicMessiah]

Van Bronkhurst!! Dirk Kuyt hits a shot straight at the keeper, but Van Bronkhurst heads it in. 3-0 Holland.

A bit unfair in terms of Italy, as theY have had several very good chances that they've wasted.

[eric]

Who's #6 on Italy? He just stood in no man's land and left the attacker open. Yeah!

Also, is Goal Differential the 1st tie-breaker or a later one?

[ManicMessiah]

Up 3-0 in the 81st minute, and the Dutch are still attacking. They are an easy team to root for.

[Brant]

welllll.... my slingbox feed has droped from 216kps to about 52kps. I guess the rest of the office here is actually trying to work or something. The game has gone from a smooth-flowing bit of footie to something that resembles scrambled cable porn.

But that was a wicked - if pixelated - shot from the Dutch just now.

[Brant]

Am I the only one who keeps waiting fro streamers to fly on the corner kicks?

[eric]

Lame from Andy Gray! The SBI Mafia has the called nailed on goal 1, and Gray is talking like players never fake injury. Thank god that rule is there or the new offsides trap would be to station a defender at the post, and just have them flop out of bounds at the right moment.

[matt]

anyone thinking that sneijder goal will be topped in this tourney? wow that was so awesome.

[Brant]

Is it just me, or does Italian defending in thiis game seem to consist of draping yourself all over the defender like a cheap prostitute, and then complaining for a foul when you're give the cold shoulder in the jaw?
Just driving me nuts trying to watch (and the animated-GIF quality pic I've got ain't helping...)

[eric]

If I were Italy, I'd try Cassano, I thought he brought fresh ideas to the attack. It's a scary proposition to be dependent on him, but the loss puts them in a perilous position.

[Brant]

Alright, now that the Dutch smacked Italy around like a... well, you know... anyone want to bet they trip up and lose 1-0 to Romania on a later counterattack or something else stupid?

[HomeyBoehme]

Oh oh oh...3-0...loved it...boy did Italy look defeated at the end of that game.

[matt]

i dont understand the italian lineup at all really. di natale is alright but it shouldve been cassano or del piero there all along. de rossi has to be in for one of the 3 mid's they started today. grosso obviously has to start as well.
----toni
---del piero/cassano
gattuso-pirlo-de rossi-camoranesi
grosso-matterrazi-panucci-zambro

[matt]

brant- i can definitely see something like that happening though i hope it doesn't these guys have come to score. i can see them trouncing everyone but then again i can see them laying a giant egg and not winning the group. but wow the sneijder replay again wowowowow.

[Moneyball]

It's funny..when Italy sit back and play for a 1-0 score, everyone criticizes them for playing catenaccio. But when they put in an offensive lineup and try to play an open game, they get beat on the counter TWICE and lose 3-0. The soccer fan in me says that's just the way it goes, but the Italy fan in me wants to see Italy come out next game with a more defensive formation and play the game that they've won with in the past.

I'd pair De Rossi and Pirlo in center mid and go with Toni and Cassano up top with Camoranesi and Perrotta or Ambrosini out wise (Camoranesi can play more of a hybrid wing/forward anyway). De Rossi brings the intensity that Italy needs to find from SOMEONE to spark them, plus Gattuso is carrying a yellow and can be brought on as a sub if Italy has a late lead.

[bgnewf]

As a neutral this is a victory for positive soccer. 3-0 up and they still barrel ahead. Gotta love the Dutch. If Holland continues to play like this and France lays another egg, who knows, Holland/Romania could come out of this. 7 points wins the group now I think and the +3 goal difference will be huge.

Until I see Spain tomorrow I am reserving final judgement, but I can see Holland, Portugal, Germany and perhaps Spain in the final 4 based on their performances so far.

[William the Terror]

Romania beat the Dutch two times in qualifying for this tourney, but in both games key players were kept off the pitch for being in Van Basten's dog house. It's tough to beat the Oranje 3 times in a row, so I pick Holland over Romania 2-1. The Italy/France game ends in a scoreless draw, as it should. HoLLLLLLLLLLLLLLand!!!!

[mike ruze]

Great result.

The deserving team won. Nice to see Italy will not be ruining another tournament like they did in 1986 and 2006 with their ugly soccer.

Its a shame when an overrated no offensive talent team can win 4 world cups by refusing to play soccer and just pack it in (kinda like Osorio ball). Italy soccer is worthy of a third world country.

Holland will choke as usual down the line but they paid the World of true soccer fans a great favor.

[HE from NJ]

i repeat:

LET'S GO HOLLAND !!!

now the important thing is to stay calm, it's now how u start in these tournaments, but how u finish. but what a hell of a way to start!!! van basten baby!!!

[Pat the Red Bulls Fan]

Didn't think I'd see Italy drubbed like that. Wesley Sneijder's goal was amazing. It's been 30 years since the Dutch beat the Italians. That's got to feel good.

[Moneyball]

mike ruze, actually the style of play Italy had in the 06 WC was not all that unattractive. Maybe you only watched their game against the U.S., but a lot of their games were a little more open.

They just so happened to not give up very many goals. Playing good defense and having an attacking mentality are not necessarily mutually exclusive. Conversely, being shut out doesn't necessarily mean they didn't bring the attack today either. In fact, I'd challenge that the reason they got blown out was because they played too aggressively on offense. They created chances and couldn't finish. They deserved to lose, but don't make yourself look stupid by hounding generalizations about a team's style based on stereotypes.

Is it fair to say that Italy has played defensively in the past? Yes. But I think they've definitely played with a more balanced style in the past, I don't know, 8 years...especially so since Donadoni took over.

"Italy soccer is worthy of a third world country."

Even though it's asenine to suggest that a country's economic status should be reflected in it's playing style, yeah, that makes a lot of sense since most third world countries are known for their defensive poise and organization...

[Danny]

I just love that the 1st goal stood. Next time maybe the Italians won't go down so easily. Sure, he got hit by his keeper, but grow a pair! God on ya Dutch!

[Simona]

By far the most entertaining game in Euro2008. YES Netherlands!!!!

[Ryan]

I could care less what happens in the rest of this tourny. The fact that Italy got thrashed just made this tourny for me. Man the Dutch play some pretty footy.

[Mig22]

Goes to show that a veteran squad in 06 is an old squad in 2008. They may bounce off of this because France is grossly overrated in their current incarnation too but it sure looks like they don't have a lot of energy. "Phone it in" comes to mind.

Additionally, I was happy to see that Pirlo continued his mediocre form shown all year.

Why, oh why, is the midfield made up of starters from AC Milan when they were a 5th place team?

For Italy today, there was not enough pace, not enough focus, and dare I say it, not enough skill on the ball.

m

[Jasper]

"Romania beat the Dutch two times in qualifying for this tourney, but in both games key players were kept off the pitch for being in Van Basten's dog house. It's tough to beat the Oranje 3 times in a row, so I pick Holland over Romania 2-1. The Italy/France game ends in a scoreless draw, as it should. HoLLLLLLLLLLLLLLand!!!!"

Romania beat us 1-0 on a rain-soaked field during a game that should have been called off. They TIED us at home. Get your facts straight before you type, eh?

[RS]

I just read a good article about the first goal on BBC Sport. It says the ref's were indeed correct because "rule 1.4.1. of the refereeing code that states 'an opposing player cannot be offside when one of the last two defenders has left the field of play.'"

http://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/606/A37087842

[Mark]

Looks like the English fans' bitterness about not being in the tournament is finally coming out.

[RS]

Mark: Were you saying I was an English fan or are you commenting on the BBC article?

[Mark]

RS, I'm speaking in general about the angry comments and stereotypes about Italy. It wasn't pointed at you.

[RS]

I thought so; just wanted to make sure. I just like using the BBC web site as one of my soccer sources (although it's annoying that most of the video is "UK Only" and wony play for me.)

[mikeruze]

Moneyball,

Did you watch WC 06? They didnt outplay anyone and had a lot of calls go there way. If not for Zinadine they probably would have lost.

They play ugly boring soccer period.

I cite the third world countries because like them they bunker down and wait to counter.

The borong soccer they diplayed today is their norm. The only difference is that their defence broke down and Holland came out to play. had Italy scored first it would have been a boring 1-0 game.

[peteo]

The Sneijder (sp?) goal was only #3 on ESPN's Top Ten Plays (Griffey's 600th homer was #1). Boo, hiss.

[fcmuenchweiler]

Absolutely the most satisfying game of football ever...the "total voetball" beautiful gamers systematically dismantling the diving cheats. No fan of soccer should be a fan of Italy. I'd even be ashamed of my own national team if I were Italian.

I second mikeruze's comments about Italy being like a third world country. No other sport in the world emulates a country's personality and culture like football. Italy's corrpution is just as bad as Afghanistan (a third world country that I have been working and living in for the past year). I mean, really, what comes to mind when one thinks of Italy? Opera and corruption; theatrics and cheating...which is exactly how they won the World Cup.

VINDICATION for the beautful game...hopefully this is a trend that continues.

[vipero]

well, at least you guys out there had some show and some climax! I use MSL for getting asleep instead, and it works fine too! ;o) cheers from Italy buds.

[Joe D]

Wow, since when did SBI become infiltrated with uneducated idiots? Italy not outplaying anyone at WC06?! Are you serious?! Take your heads out of your asses and learn to WATCH the matches properly. The only game that they were outplayed was against US (as in we the USA). So why are all you idiots reducing the USA's efforts to playing against a third world country?!

Doesn't anybody realize why the Netherlands dominated?! Van Basten had an excellent strategy...play no nonsense team defense, and explode on the counter-attack. I wonder which other team tends to do that...oh right, ITALY.

Get a clue, people...get a clue

[Tolik]

The second goal is a clinic on how to counterattack. Absolutely brilliant.

I actually love and respect both Julie Foudy and Tommy Smyth. Separately! Don't put them together. Isn't it obvious, they hate each other?

[HomeyBoehme]

I'm sorry, but when ESPN puts together a commercial highlighting the EURO 2008 tournament, and they use clips of Italy being petulant cheats (kicking the ball away so a quick free kick can't be taken, obstructing the goalie, whining to the ref) to highlight how Italy are the "Masters" of the game (I can't remember the exact tagline), you have to scratch your head. What exactly is Italy brining to the beautiful game?

[Supporter]

Match Holland - Italy : 9 june 2008.
This Match EndScore is to good to be true !
People did Black Magic ( VOODOO ) on ITALY, because they are jealous that Italy is World Champion.
Captain Cannavaro get injured and cannot play, also by Black Magic.
And the Referree was very generous to Holland, also because of Sneijders birthday, so he gave them this match as a present, also by giving Italy the yellow cards instead of Holland.
This is the first time in history that Holland got this onrealistic miracles score of 3-0 against Italy.
So this miracle is definitely the cause of Black Magic !
I wish the Italy team & Cannavaro very goodluck, and may God Bless them all to become the winner of this UEFA EURO 2008 !

[Mig22]

well, that was interesting.

[royce]

yo, some of these comments are a little confusing to me... all i have to say is that holland have some serious defensive issues to fix if they are to go deep into the tournament... i'm not sure that france was the right team against whom to judge romania's attacking prowess since france's defense was one of the most solid i've seen in the tournament so far. and if henry is deemed fit (even though i still don't know how trezeguet is left out for anelka.... this reminds me of EJ/altidore, cooper, some US type BS) france will not look the same in these next few matches.

sure enough, holland punished italy today and italy look sure to go out now (even though we have to remember italy historically play poorly in first matches to the tune of losing to haiti 1-0, wc 1974...), but i am still not a believer. sure, offensively they look stronger then they have since wc 1998 but holland scored on counter attacks off of two chances that were cleared off the line, and there were at least two more clear chances squandered by the italians. now, they also squandered a few as well (van nistelrooy, anyone?), but you cannot play so poorly down the back and expect to do too much in euro...