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Final
Netherlands 3-0 Italy
Half: 2-0
Goals
26'R. Van Nistelrooy1-0  
31'W. Sneijder2-0  
79'G. Van Bronckhorst3-0  
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Netherlands v Italy
Time Commentary
93' FULL TIME
The whistle blows to bring an end to a fantastic game of football. The Italians will point to some dubious refereeing decisions but the Dutch fully deserved to win this game and scored two absolutely fantastic goals in doing so. Optimism in the Dutch camp will be high, while Italy will need a win in their next game, against Romania, if they are to avoid leaving the competition in its early stages. That was the game that this tournament really needed to get it going. It finished the Netherlands 3-0 Italy.
92' DEFLECTED WIDE
Cassano almost saves some face for the Italians but his shot from close-range was deflected wide.
90' OFF HIS LINE
Buffon comes racing off his line to act as a sweeper in order to stifle another dangerous Dutch attack.
88' VAN PERSIE GOES CLOSE
Van Persie wriggled free of his markers in the area and fired in a stunning shot that almost flew into the top corner.
85' GOOD DEFENDING
Cassano's tricky reverse pass almost found Toni but he couldn't find a way through what's been a surprisingly solid Dutch defence.
83' OVER THE BAR
Pirlo fires in a corner but Panucci can only direct his header over the bar. Italy look like a broken side as the Dutch continue to produce some scintillating football.
81' OFF THE BAR!!!
Afellay had only just come on for Kuyt when he turned Grosso inside out and unleashed a ferocious drive from a ridiculous angle, which beat Buffon and clipped the top of the bar!
78' GOOAALL!!!
Kuyt went clear but was denied by a brilliant save from Buffon. The striker steadied himself, picked out the cross and Van Bronckhorst did the rest, putting a low header past the Italian 'keeper. It's the Netherlands 3-0 Italy.
77' WORLD CLASS SAVE
Van der Sar produces a top-class save from a brilliant free-kick effort from Pirlo. What a save!
76' CHAOS AT THE BACK
Grosso beat his man and tested Van der Sar with a fizzing drive that the 'keeper spilled and hesistant defending almost gifted Toni with a goal.
75' WHAT A CHANCE!
Cassano's perfect pass finds Toni who only had the 'keeper to beat but could only hook his shot over the bar. What a great chance for the equaliser!
74' SUBSTITUTION
Italy go for broke and bring on the trouble-maker Cassano for Camoranesi.
69' SUBSTITUTION
Van Nistelrooy makes way for Van Persie who must surely be lacking match fitness after missing most of the season through injury.
67' QUIET SPELL
Neither side are taking many risks at the moment with the Dutch happy to keep the ball and the Italians hoping to prevent going further behind.
63' SUBSTITUTION
Di Natale goes off and on comes Del Piero for Italy. The experienced striker is playing in his fourth European Championship here in Austria and Switzerland.
62' CHEEKY EFFORT
Pirlo tried a cheeky attempt at goal from a free-kick out wide and almost caught Van der Sar napping, but unfortunately for the Italian he saw his effort curl just wide of the near post.
61' CALM AT THE BACK
Zambrotta found the ball at his feet in his own area but dealt with it well and not only cleared the danger but launched an attack in the process.
59' POOR FINISH
Toni brings down the ball in the box with an expert touch but his shot on the turn was poor and Van der Sar made the save comfortably.
57' YELLOW CARD
De Jong picks up a booking for a poor challenge on Ambrosini after he got caught in possession by the midfielder.
54' SUBSTITUTION
Materazzi makes way for Grosso at the back as Italy look to get more width into their game.
52' FLASHED ACROSS THE BOX
Zambrotta got the better of Kuyt on the by-line but couldn't pick out Toni with his driven cross which flew across the box.
51' JUST WIDE
Ooijer got on the end of a corner from Van der Vaart at the back post but couldn't get the direction on his header and it drifted harmlessly wide.
50' YELLOW CARD
Gatusso gets a booking for an incident of off-the-ball dissent.
48' BAD CHALLENGE
Materazzi goes in with a hard, late challenge on Van Nistelrooy but no foul is given. Have the officials been watching the replays of the first goal at half time?
47' POOR DELIVERY
Italy had a corner early in the second half, but Pirlo's delivery was poor and Panucci could only put it out for a goal-kick.
46' SECOND HALF
The Netherlands get the second half underway and will be looking for more of the same.
45' HALF TIME
The ref brings an end to what has been by far the best half of football of the tournament so far. Italy looked the better side early on, but a rather fortuitous offside decision gifted Van Nistelrooy the opener just minutes before a flowing counter-attack saw Van Bronckhorst and Kuyt combine to set up Sneijder who swivelled and fired home a volley to make it 2-0 to the Dutch. It's been a great 45 minutes of football and with Italy needing to chase the game it's hard to see that changing in the second period. At half time it's the Netherlands 2-0 Italy.
44' OVER THE BAR
Di Natale unleashes a ferocious drive from distance, but it was always rising and fizzed over the bar.
41' SHOULD HAVE BEEN THREE
Van Nistelrooy latched on to a beautiful through-ball and only had the 'keeper to beat, but Buffon stood tall and made the save to keep the lead down to two. The Dutch are playing some great football tonight.
39' WASTED POSSESSION
Kuyt works hard to win possession for Holland but then plays an extremely risky pass that Camoranesi should really have done better with, but his effort goes out for a goal-kick.
36' BRAVE BLOCK
Materazzi gets in the way of a decent Sneijder shot that could have given Buffon some problems. The Dutch can't see enough of the ball at the moment.
33' GOOD EFFORT
Toni tries an effort from distance which Van der Sar spilt but there was nobody there to get on the end of it. Italy look stunned by those two goals at the moment.
31' GOOAALL!!!
Sneijder makes it two for the Netherlands. Van Bronckhorst continued his run down the left on the break and fired a deep cross to Kuyt who headed it back across goal for Sneijder to volley home from a tight angle. It's the Netherlands 2-0 Italy.
30' OFF THE LINE
Zambrotta makes a typical run down the left and wins a corner, which Van Bronckhorst clears off the line! That was almost the equaliser!
27' YELLOW CARD
Luca Toni gets booked for complaining about the failure to give an offside for the goal. Van Nistelrooy was miles offside with Italy's last defender off the field of play at the time but nothing was given and the goal stands.
26' GOOAALL!!!
Van Nistelrooy puts Holland in the lead! Sneijder drove in a shot that was turned in by Van Nistelrooy who was clearly in an offside position but the flag stayed down. It's the Netherlands 1-0 Italy.
23' ALMOST AN OWN GOAL!
Materazzi rises higher than Van Nistelrooy but he almost diverts the ball into his own net in attempting to clear the danger.
22' OVER-HIT
Sneijder brings down Ambrosini with a late challenge but Pirlo wastes the opportunity to get the ball in the box by over-hitting the set-piece.
21' POOR BALL
Italy probe for an opening but the usually assured Pirlo slices his long pass and the move breaks down.
18' OVER THE BAR
Sneijder has a pop from distance but his effort was always rising and never troubled Buffon.
16' HONESTY
Van Nistelrooy burst clear and past Buffon, who looked to have put the striker off balance, but he didn't go down and the chance went begging. If he'd gone down that would surely have been a penalty. Very honest!
15' TAME EFFORT
Van Nistelrooy attempted a shot on the turn from distance but never really got hold of it and Buffon saved easily.
14' QUIET SPELL
The last few minutes have been a little quiet as the Dutch keep possession and try to fashion an opening in Italy's rock-solid defence.
11' WIDE OF THE POST
Toni rises highest in the box but could only guide his tricky header wide of the far post. This has been a cracking game so far!
10' HIS OWN MAN!
Sneijder's free-kick beats the wall but hits his own man, Ooijer, who was standing in front of the 'keeper. Van der Vaart follows up with a decent shot that Buffon claims.
9' DANGEROUS AREA
Van Nistelrooy wins a free kick for Holland on the edge of the area. Sneijder's lining it up...
7' POOR TOUCH
Di Natale can't quite bring the ball under control when well placed on the edge of the area and the Dutch clear the danger.
5' TOP CLASS MOVE
Italy put together a top quality move which ends with Camoranesi just failing to pick out Ambrosini who was making a dangerous run.
3' FIZZING CROSS
Di Natale fires a ball across the box but can't pick out Toni and a decent early chance for Italy goes begging.
2' CLASSY SKILL
Wesley Sneijder, who's celebrating his 24th birthday today, shows off his skill with a lovely turn that set off a move that almost resulted in a chance for Van Nistelrooy.
1' KICK OFF
The anthems have reverberated around this small stadium and Italy get the game underway.
0' ITALY
Italy are being tipped for the title by many pundits, and when you look at the strength of their squad it's not hard to see why. With the AC Milan midfield of Gattuso, Pirlo and Ambrosini running the show then there should be plenty of opportunities for Di Natale and Camoranesi to get forward in support of Luca Toni up front. It'll be interesting to see how the side cope without their inspirational captain, Cannavaro, who's out of the tournament, but my guess is that they will have the quality available to hardly notice he's sat in the stands and not out there. A point of encouragement for the Italians is that their experienced full-back, Panucci, overcame late fitness doubts and will start. Let's hope this is the game that really sparks the tournament into life, because it's in dire need of some seriously quality.
0' THE NETHERLANDS
The Netherlands have reached the semi-final stage on four occasions in the last five European Championships but will have their work cut out to add to that tally this time round. As always the squad is packed full of talent, but it won't surprise many that there is unrest in the Dutch camp once again. Already without the services of Van Bommel after a disagreement, the manager Marco Van Basten is now also without Clarence Seedorf who also does not see eye to eye with the coach. There's plenty of ability still in the squad, but injuries to Robben and Babel have left the Dutch short of options out wide, while they look shaky at the back at times. If the Dutch click then they'll play some great football, but Van Basten has been very defensive during his tenure so far and it's hard to see them going all the way unless he has a change of policy.
0' MATCH PREVIEW
This is the most anticipated game of the tournament so far with the Dutch taking on the World Champions Italy in the first true heavyweight encounter of Euro 2008. The opening game in the so-called Group of Death was a huge disappointment, with France and Romania playing out a goalless draw, and whoever comes out on top tonight will feel confident of progressing to the knock-out stages.
Commentary  |  Team Stats  |  Player Stats
Teams
NetherlandsItaly
Edwin van der Sar
Nigel de Jong
Rafael Van der Vaart
Joris Mathijsen
Andre Ooijer
Robin van Persie
Khalid Boulahrouz
Dirk Kuyt
John Heitinga
Orlando Engelaar
Wesley Sneijder
Ibrahim Afellay
Ruud Van Nistelrooy
Giovanni Van Bronckhorst
Gianluigi Buffon
Christian Panucci
Marco Materazzi
Massimo Ambrosini
Gennaro Ivan Gattuso
Andrea Pirlo
Luca Toni
Antonio Di Natale
Fabio Grosso
Andrea Barzagli
Gianluca Zambrotta
Antonio Cassano
Alessandro Del Piero
Mauro German Camoranesi
Substitution
70' - van Persie
 - Van Nistelrooy
77' - Heitinga
 - Boulahrouz
81' - Afellay
 - Kuyt
Grosso - 54'
Materazzi - 
Del Piero - 64'
Di Natale - 
Cassano - 75'
Camoranesi - 
Yellow Cards
 de Jong (58')
 
 
Toni (27')  
Zambrotta (35')  
Gattuso (51')  
NetherlandsTeam StatsItaly
3 Goals 0
3 Assists 0
18 Shots 15
11 Shots on Goal 5
5 Saves 8
0 Penalties Scored 0
0 Penalty Kicks 0
11 Crosses 17
3 Corner Kicks 5
4 Offsides 3
19 Fouls Committed 10
1 Cautions/Yellow Cards 3
0 Red Cards 0
Commentary  |  Team Stats  |  Player Stats
Netherlands
  GA SHT SHT-OG Svs SPct PKF PKS YC RC
E. van der Sar 0 15 5 5 100.0 0 0 0 0
  SUB G Ast SHTS SOG SOG% CK CR FC FS Off YC RC
I. Afellay +82 0 0 1 0 0.0 0 2 0 0 0 0 0
K. Boulahrouz -78 0 0 0 0 - 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
N. de Jong 0 0 0 0 - 0 0 1 0 0 1 0
O. Engelaar 0 0 1 1 100.0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0
J. Heitinga +78 0 0 0 0 - 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
D. Kuyt -82 0 2 1 1 100.0 0 3 2 1 0 0 0
J. Mathijsen 0 0 0 0 - 0 0 1 0 0 0 0
A. Ooijer 0 0 1 0 0.0 0 0 3 1 0 0 0
W. Sneijder 1 1 3 1 33.3 1 1 2 1 0 0 0
G. Van Bronckhorst 1 0 1 1 100.0 0 2 4 1 0 0 0
E. van der Sar 0 0 0 0 - 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
R. Van der Vaart 0 0 2 1 50.0 2 1 5 3 0 0 0
R. Van Nistelrooy -71 1 0 4 3 75.0 0 2 0 2 1 0 0
R. van Persie +71 0 0 1 0 0.0 0 0 0 0 3 0 0

Italy
  GA SHT SHT-OG Svs SPct PKF PKS YC RC
G. Buffon 3 15 8 5 62.5 0 0 0 0
  SUB G Ast SHTS SOG SOG% CK CR FC FS Off YC RC
M. Ambrosini 0 0 0 0 - 0 3 3 3 0 0 0
A. Barzagli 0 0 0 0 - 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
G. Buffon 0 0 0 0 - 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
M. Camoranesi -76 0 0 1 0 0.0 0 1 0 2 0 0 0
A. Cassano +76 0 0 0 0 - 0 1 0 2 0 0 0
A. Del Piero +65 0 0 2 1 50.0 1 0 0 1 2 0 0
A. Di Natale -65 0 0 2 1 50.0 0 2 0 0 1 0 0
G. Gattuso 0 0 0 0 - 0 3 3 2 0 1 0
F. Grosso +55 0 0 2 1 50.0 0 2 0 1 0 0 0
M. Materazzi -55 0 0 0 0 - 0 0 0 1 0 0 0
C. Panucci 0 0 2 0 0.0 0 0 1 1 0 0 0
A. Pirlo 0 0 2 1 50.0 4 3 0 4 0 0 0
L. Toni 0 0 3 1 33.3 0 0 1 1 0 1 0
G. Zambrotta 0 0 1 0 0.0 0 2 2 1 0 1 0

Goalkeepers
GAGoals Allowed
SHTShots Faced
SHT-OGShots on Goal Faced
SvsSaves
SPctSave Pct.(Percentage)
PKFPenalty Kicks Faced
PKSPenalty Kicks Saved
YCCautions/Yellow Cards
RCRed Cards
Players
GGoals
SHTSShots
SOGShots on Goal
SOG%Shots on Goal %
CKCorner Kicks
CRCrosses
FCFouls Committed
FSFouls Suffered
YCCautions/Yellow Cards
RCRed Cards
AstAssists
OffOffsides
SUBSubstitution
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