Italy off to a Perfect Start in Euro 2024

Italy off to a Perfect Start in Euro 2024

After conceding a goal in a mere 23 seconds, Italy’s start to defending their European Championship title couldn’t have been worse.

However, a change in fortune quickly followed for the Azzurri.

Italy bounced back from allowing the fastest goal in the tournament’s 64-year history to secure a 2-1 victory over Albania in Dortmund. The match, deemed an Adriatic derby, immediately hinted at a potential upset.

Nedim Bajrami electrified the predominantly pro-Albanian crowd at Westfalenstadion by seizing a throw-in from Italy’s left back, Federico Dimarco.

His failure to reach teammate Alessandro Bastoni led to Bajrami taking a touch and unleashing a powerful shot past the near post.

In just 16 minutes, Italy took the lead as Bastoni nodded in Lorenzo Pellegrini’s cross at the back post in the 11th minute, while Nicolo Barella expertly slotted home a curling first-time effort from the edge of the box.

Barella was among the five players retained from the team that triumphed in the penalty shoot-out against England in the 2021 European Championship final.

With the likes of three-time champion Spain and 2022 World Cup semifinalist Croatia in Group B, the pressure was on Italy’s squad under Luciano Spalletti to secure a victory in their opening game.

Spain had already notched a 3-0 win over Croatia earlier in the day.

Albania’s quickfire goal after 23 seconds is now etched as the tournament’s fastest ever goal in European Championship history.

Led by the 16-year-old Yamal, Spain’s new generation cruised to a 3-0 victory over Croatia at Euro 2024.

Bajrami’s strike injected a sense of urgency into the Azzurri’s play and marked a significant milestone – swiftly surpassing the previous tournament record set by Russia’s Dmitri Kirichenko in 2004 with a goal in just 67 seconds.

Despite facing a hostile atmosphere and enduring jeers and boos from the overwhelmingly red-clad crowd, Italy took control of the game thereafter, dictating play with possession.

Under the stewardship of Luciano Spalletti, Italy has suffered just one defeat in 12 matches since his appointment last August – a few months after leading Napoli to an Italian league title.

Tasked with rebuilding national pride following Italy’s failure to qualify for the World Cup for the second consecutive time, Spalletti’s side now sets its sights on clinching a record-tying third European Championship title.

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