In the last-16 round, Switzerland defeated Italy by a score of 2-0, so securing their place in the quarterfinals of the Euro 2024.
The first goal was scored by Remo Freuler in the 37th minute of the match, and then Ruben Vargas added another goal to Switzerland’s advantage early in the second session of the round-of-16 match.
The Swiss are entirely deserving of their spot in the quarterfinals, which will be against England. Italy finished the competition in second place, and the Swiss certainly deserve their spot.
It was Switzerland’s best ever performance at a European Championship, as they made it all the way to the final eight of Euro 2020. However, they appear to have the potential to be a dark horse for the title this summer.
Considering that Italy, the current holders of the Euro 2020 tournament, have been eliminated from the competition, and the fact that they did not do well in the group round of the competition, this tournament will be remembered as a very dismal one for the Azzurri.
Italy would have been hoping to get off to a strong start in the second half of the match after a terrible first half, but just 27 seconds of the start of the second half, they found themselves trailing by a score of 2-0.
Vargas’s shot from a distance was so impressive that it pinpointed the top corner of the net. It was a fantastic performance.
In the meantime, Vargas was the one who set up Freuler to score the first goal of the game in the 37th minute. On each side of the halftime whistle, Italy had a number of individuals who attempted to score.
Switzerland had in control of possession for the first twenty minutes of the match, but they were having trouble carving out openings, while Italy was sloppy with the ball. The first twenty minutes of the match went by without any complications.
Murat Yakin’s team displayed their technical abilities in the middle of the field and their creative movement in the last third of the field against Italy. The Swiss were outstanding against Germany in their final group-stage match, and they were full of confidence against Italy.
Swiss striker Breel Embolo had the opening opportunity of the match in the 24th minute, when he broke into the Italy box and overcame the offside trap. However, Italy’s goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma, who has been Italy’s standout player throughout the tournament, was able to save the striker’s last effort.
After Freuler collected a cross from Vargas and fired the ball into the bottom corner past Donnarumma with a tiny deflection, Switzerland made the breakthrough in the 37th minute of the encounter. This was no more than Yakin’s squad deserved given their dominance throughout the competition, and it was a goal that they deserved.
Not long before the halftime break, Fabian Rieder took a deft free kick that was headed in the direction of the goal, but Donnarumma was there to make the save.
It was an absolute stunner from Vargas, who picked out the top corner with a rasping effort from beyond the Italy box. Switzerland extended their lead shortly into the second session, and it was a goal which was scored by Vargas.
Fabian Schar nearly gave Italy a great slice of luck when he headed the ball against his own crossbar shortly after that. However, Switzerland was able to survive the perilous moment, and they proceeded to keep a clean sheet on Saturday night.
Luciano Spalletti’s team was unable to equal Switzerland in terms of how well they played defensively or offensively on Saturday evening. Italy’s performance was quite awful.
Despite the fact that the Blues won the title of champions at Euro 2020, they have failed to qualify for either of the two most recent World Cups and were never considered to be a competitive contender for the title this summer.
There was a faint glimmer of a potential comeback from Spalletti’s team, as Gianluca Scamacca struck the post from close range late in the game. However, it never appeared to be a genuine prospect, and the superb Switzerland was thoroughly deserved of their position in the quarterfinals of the competition.
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