Following their disappointing loss to Scotland in just his second game in charge, Spain head coach Luis de la Fuente couldn’t have asked for a better start from his side.
Pressing the Italy backline aggressively high up the pitch, Yeremy Pino dispossessed Leonardo Bonucci, allowing him time and space in the box to pick his corner and slot the ball in, giving Spain the lead inside three minutes and putting them one step closer to their first piece of silverware in 11 years.
That lead lasted less than 10 minutes though, as Robin Le Normand was penalised for handling in the box after Nicolo Zaniolo’s shot cannoned off his arm. Ciro Immobile stepped up and fired the spot kick into the bottom left corner to restore parity after 11 minutes.
Italy then thought they had completed a turnaround in quick succession after Davide Frattesi superbly slotted the ball through the legs of Unai Simon after being played through on goal by a sublime Jorginho pass. But the goal was ruled out for a marginal offside, giving way to an even half-time scoreline.
Both sides continued the back-and-forth nature of the game after the interval, but it was Spain with the better of the chances as Mikel Merino, Alvaro Morata and Rodri came within inches of restoring their nation’s lead.
Spain’s dominance only grew beyond the hour mark too, and Simon was a spectator for most of the second half, that was until he was called into action by a Frattesi effort out of nowhere but the Spaniard was quick to react and deny the Italian.
As both sets of players began to tire and it looked like extra time would be beckoning, Spain retook the lead through fortuitous circumstances. Rodri’s shot from the edge of the box took a massive deflection, and the ball landed to Joselu who prodded the ball just a couple of yards from the goal.
The winning strike was what Spain deserved after dominating for a clear majority of the evening, and will now face Croatia on Sunday for the Nations League’s third-ever crown. Meanwhile, Italy will face the Netherlands in a third-place playoff.
