The final quarter-final of Euro 2008 was played in Ernst, Vienna, Austria. The Stade Happel saw Group D winners Spain meet Group C runners-up Italy.

Spain, which has a full lineup, still sent their strongest lineup, and on the Italian side, Donadoni once again ignored the Fiorentina gang, and at this moment, even the Italian media hostile to Fiorentina couldn't help but sigh helplessly: Donadoni really brought the Fiorentina gang to the European Cup.

After the start of the game, both sides played very cautiously, and the game was very uneventful, although Spain wanted to settle the battle in regular time, but the Italian team, who had made up their minds to defend it, set up a bucket formation in their own half, and Di Natale was even booed by the domestic fans for deliberately delaying the time during the game.

Even Degan, who came to the scene to watch the game in person, felt that his teeth were sore, the ball was played too shamelessly, shameless and not shameless, put it aside first, and finally Donadoni achieved his goal and dragged the game into the final penalty shootout, and at the moment of this decisive battle, it finally refreshed the fans who were already drowsy.

After the pick, the penalty shootout began in front of the stands where Spanish fans gathered, and the Spanish team took the lead, Villa, who had already scored four goals, was the first to shoot, the ball shot into the bottom left corner of Buffon, the Italian goalkeeper completely misjudged the direction, and Spain scored the first goal easily.

On the Italian side, Grosso, who scored the last goal of the World Cup-winning penalty shootout, scored easily with his left foot on the left side of the goal, and Cassie judged the right direction, but could not save. The score was 1:1, and the two teams were drawn.

In the second round, Spain sent Cazorla, who came on as a substitute in the second half, and Spain's super substitute calmly pushed the bottom left corner of the goal to score, but Buffon misjudged the direction again.

The Italian team sent De Rossi, who also scored a penalty in the World Cup final, and when the Roma teenager came on the field, Degan's heart trembled, nervous, and the big wet brother was nervous, and sure enough, De Rossi shot a half-high ball on the left side, Casillas judged correctly and saved the ball sideways, the score was 2:1, and Spain was ahead.

De Rossi, who missed the penalty, fell to his knees directly, holding his head in his hands with a look of disbelief, and Casillas, who had made a contribution, raised his arms and shouted, he has helped Spain take their destiny into their hands.

Digan also sighed, history has not changed, out of personal feelings, Digan still hopes that Italy can change its fate and win this game, but it's a pity that Italian football is really sick, a phonegate incident, almost destroyed Italy's home league, coupled with the youth training fault, so that Italy's outstanding young players, almost completely broken, such Italy, how can it compete with the powerful Spain.

In the third round, Senna, the defender of the Spanish team, took the penalty, like Dugan, Senna is also Brazilian, after Villarreal became famous, joined the Spanish International, and finally the captain of Villarreal shot decisively to the middle corner of the goal, Buffon made a mistake again, and Spain hit all three goals in the first three.

The third appearance of the Italian team was substitute Camoranesi, the Juventus winger withstood the pressure and scored in the upper right corner of the goal. With the score of 3:2, Spain continued to lead.

In the fourth round, Spain's Guiza took the penalty, as the top scorer in La Liga last season, but the penalty kick was not what Guiza was good at, and sure enough, his shot to the right of the middle was blocked by Buffon, and Spain missed for the first time.

Spain missed, the opportunity went to the Italian team, the fourth was Di Natale, the Udinese winger shot to the right side of the goal, again by the brave San Casillas judged the right flying save, the Italian team missed the best chance to tie, the score is still 3:2, as long as the next round of penalties Spain penalty, the matador will win.

In the fifth round, the Spanish team appeared on the 10th Fabregas, in this European Cup, Fabregas can only come on as a substitute for most of them, but in a limited time, he still played a great role, this penalty, as long as the Emirates King hits, Spain will eliminate Italy, advance to the semi-finals, and finally Fabregas withstood the pressure, he successfully deceived Buffon with a penalty kick, and shot into the lower right corner of the goal, the Italian goalkeeper completely saved in the wrong direction and lost the game.

Spain, as in their history, are well on their way to the last four, and their next opponent will be Russia, who have eliminated the Netherlands.

Looking at the Spaniards cheering for victory on the pitch, and the Italian players who were saddened, Digan couldn't tell what kind of feeling it was in his heart.

When he left the court, a reporter found him, and Deegan did not refuse, and accepted the interview very happily, but the first sentence Deegan said was to bombard Donadoni!

"In this position as the head coach of the Italian national team, Donadoni is the worst I can remember, in the previous group stage, Italy's predicament, he didn't learn at all, he only complained that there were no more players to choose from, hell! I just saw that my brothers in Fiorentina were on the verge of freezing on the bench, they were all members of the Fiorentina treble, but in Donadoni's eyes, there was no place for him at all, I don't understand why this happened, Giampaolo, Ricciardo, they are all very good players, they deserve a more solid place in the Italian team, but how are my brothers treated? Italy is out, Donadoni is mainly responsible, he is a bitch who only complains! ”

As for the winning Spanish team, Digan gave a lot of praise: "They performed very well, a big improvement from the Spanish team two years ago, but I'm not worried, I will meet them in the final, for me it makes no difference whether it is Spain or Russia!" ”

Degan is now already thinking about the opponent in the final, and obviously he has no idea what he will face in the semi-finals.

"The Turks, I'm not worried about them, they did perform well in this European Cup, but with their strength, it is still a little difficult to qualify for the final, first of all, you have to ask me if I agree!"

Degan, as always, showed his arrogance in front of reporters, while his brothers had to accept a disappointing defeat, missing Pirlo's Italian team, in this game, can only be passively defensive, although the Spanish team has the advantage on the field, but the biggest contributor to the final victory for Spain is still the goalkeeper Casillas, it is he who saved two penalties in the penalty shootout, sent Spain to the semi-finals of the European Cup, and it was he who single-handedly rewrote Spain's 88 years, There is an embarrassing history of no victory over Italy in official matches.

When Guissa followed Italy's De Rossi to miss a penalty, all the Spanish players in the stadium looked frustrated, but only Casillas remained steadfast in his eyes, and then he saved Di Natale's penalty, and Cesc Fabregas sent Spain to the last four in one fell swoop.

Casillas saved a penalty in a major tournament last time back to the World Cup in South Korea and Japan, and he himself said: "The World Cup against South Korea may be my last penalty memory, but obviously I was better in this game, standing in front of the goal I was sure that we will go to the last four, and for Russia, I can only say that we beat them 4-1 in the group stage, although they were quite eye-catching yesterday against the Netherlands, I am still confident that Spain can reach the final." ”

Speaking of which, neither Spain nor Italy are the darlings of penalty shootouts, and this time Casillas's performance completely overwhelmed Buffon, and the Spanish captain also led the team to rewrite the 88-year history of shame, Casillas once again proved that he is the best goalkeeper in the world, and in his eyes, it is not just the final four of the European Championship, although this is already their best result, but the championship is their ultimate goal.

After a suffocating penalty shoot-out, Spain finally sent the world champions home early, and while Casillas, Cesc Fabregas and others were ecstatic, the Matadors quietly broke the spell. The spell is used to break, since you want to conquer the whole of Europe, of course, you must first conquer these so-called curses, maybe this Spain is destined to make history.

Spain have not reached the semi-finals of an international tournament since finishing runners-up at Euro 1984, and beating Italy on penalties has created the best record in Spanish football in nearly 24 years.

After four games, Spain's forwards performed very well, but it can be clearly seen from the Spanish team's tactical system that the midfield is the key to their smooth journey to the semi-finals. Silva and Senna's performances may not have been eye-catching, but there is no doubt that this once fringe task of the Spanish team has now become a solid barrier for the Spanish midfield.

From a marginal person in the World Cup in Germany to an absolute main force today, Senna's progress in the past two years is obvious to all. It was precisely because of his consistent performance that Calagones decisively abandoned Albelda, the former number one favorite. And after these few games, I believe that no matter how demanding people are, Senna is an irreplaceable midfield barrier in Spain's tactical system.

The use of a technical midfielder and the control of the midfield by passing the ball is a style of play that Calagones has insisted on for several years. But to keep the team balanced, there must be a pillar of midfielding, which is a test for Senna, who has to intercept the opposition's midfield and pass to the attack, and he must also protect the back as much as possible.

As Albelda's stand-in, Senna played quite well in the first two group games and today's quarter-finals, limiting the contact between opponents De Rossi and Aquilani and the forward trident.

The Spanish media once described Senna as Caragones' Makelele, but compared with the old French back, Senna has good attacking strength, and the Brazilian with delicate skills is by no means a brute. As the pivot of attacking and defending transitions, in today's game, Senna was the one with the most passes in the team, even more than Barcelona duo Xavi, Iniesta and wide attacker Silva.

In addition, Senna also has a long-range shot, this game, Senna originally had the opportunity to solve Italy in regular time, if it were not for the help of the goalpost, maybe Senna would have become Spain's biggest hero today.

Caragones was also very pleased with Senna's contribution after the game: "He was the key to the victory in this game, from the defense to the reinforcements, and even to the first kick of the attack. ”

In Brazil suffered from not having a good midfielder, having to put Arsenal on the bench Gilberto. When Silva and Wolfsburg's second-rate defender Josue continue to be prominent, it is hard to imagine that a high-quality defender like Senna with both offense and defense will be given to Spain.

Of course, it is not the first time that Spain has benefited from Brazilian foreign aid, and the past Donato, Catania and others were also extradited from South America, and the next round of the showdown against Russia, whether Senna can limit Arshavin's play will be the key to whether Spain can go further.

The Spanish team in the penalty shootout, rare to have the last laugh, and the Italians fell in front of the penalty shootout, it is not the first time, this time they watched the Spaniards advance to the semi-finals of the European Championship, 88 years of unbeaten history against Spain, but after the game, Italian coach Donadoni still said stiffly: "I have done everything I can, I am proud of my players." ”

Many would have thought that Donadoni was complaining about the loss of Cannavaro and the suspension of Andrea Pirlo and Gattuso before the match with Spain, but the Italian didn't think so, and he even said with a hard mouth: "Pirlo and Gattuso's replacements, Aquilani and Ambrosini, have been very good, all the players are doing well, but luck is not on Italy's side." ”

In fact, Aquilani and Ambrosini could only be regarded as passing, and although Donadoni said that he thanked the players for their efforts, the disappointment was also evident in his words, after all, no one would be happy that the 88-year record was ruined in his own hands.

Donadoni also confessed his loss, and even said sorry to the media: "I can only say that I feel disappointed, and I also say sorry to all the Italians, but the players and I have done everything we could, we deserve to be praised, Spain is a very good team, they are very physical and technical, but then it will be a tough test for them, maybe they can reach the final, or win the championship, I wish the Spanish team!" ”

When a reporter relayed Dugan's evaluation of him after the game to Donadoni, the Italian coach immediately became furious: "He doesn't understand anything at all, he's just a player, his responsibility is to play well on the pitch and not dictate someone else's work, he thinks I've buried his Fiorentina teammates, that's just his idea, I will only choose the most suitable player to play, instead of listening to his nonsense!" ”

Donadoni continues to be hard-tongued, but that doesn't reflect the fact that the World Cup winner was kept out of the semi-finals of the European Championship.

Italy's elimination is not unusual, and the main reason why the world champions were able to maintain their strength in the subsequent European Championships is that they continued the highly competitive team that won the World Cup.

Italy certainly retains their roots as world champions this time, but unlike in the past, Italy at the World Cup in Germany was the oldest world champion in 44 years, and now the world champions have gone through another two years and continue to get older.

For veterans, the increase in age is naturally accompanied by a sharp decline in form, Materazzi and Zambrotta are typical, so although the team is still the same as two years ago, the fighting power has regressed far from it, and such a team certainly cannot be compared with Italy at the World Cup.

And when the form of the veterans is declining, Italy lacks fresh blood that can be stepped on in time, and in this European Cup, there are only two "new internationals" that can be called Pazzini and Montolivo, but they can only serve as cheerleaders on the bench most of the time.

Most of the rest of the positions are still held by the world champions, who are already seriously inferior to their former level, exposing Italy's lack of reserves, which is in fact caused by the sinking of Serie A.

For nearly 20 years, Serie A has been considered the toughest league in the world, and the stars it has produced are also extremely combative. In fact, in the past 20 years, there has been no shortage of core players from Serie A among the teams that have performed well in almost every World Series, such as the Dutch Three Musketeers, the German Troika, Baggio, Bierhoff and Zinedine Zidane.

However, in the semi-finals of this European Championship, apart from Digan and Kompany, who played for Fiorentina, there was no Serie A player, which is unique in the past 20 years of world competition. This phenomenon fully reflects the serious decline in the level of Serie A, and the star of Serie A is no longer a guarantee of results.

The current Serie A is no longer the most difficult league, last season Inter Milan was outstanding, and the season just ended, Fiorentina won the championship strongly.

Without a great young player to rise to the top, and even if there were, Donadoni would not dare to let it go, so he could only cautiously continue to rely on the world champion.

Italy's exit disappointed fans who like Italian football, but fans will not criticize the players too much, because they are world champions and national heroes, so who should carry this black cauldron, Donadoni is of course the best candidate.

It is difficult to send charcoal in the snow, but it is easy to fall into the well.

The outstanding representative of the young Italian coach, who was previously touted by the media, immediately became a sinner in the eyes of the people after losing the match against Spain.

In fact, as the media said, Donadoni is a good coach, but he really does not have the ability to lead the Italian team forward, Donadoni did not have any outstanding coaching resume before becoming the Italian coach, after taking office, Lippi and Bealzot, the two world champion coaches are like two mountains pressing on Donadoni.

When Donadoni led Livorno, the team was very distinctive, and Donadoni also wanted to bring out an Italian team of his own, but his tactics were often influenced by Lippi, Bealzot, and even authoritative reporters, and the big names in the team.

The Italians are going home, and the World Cup winner two years ago should be put in a safe today, instead of taking it out at any time to talk about it, the glory of two years ago can't save the decline of Italian football today.

Although the media will find many reasons for the defeat of the Italian national team, whether it is Cannavaro's injury or Donadoni's miscommand, they are actually just appearances and excuses for failure, and the real reason lies in the decline of the overall strength of Italian football.

No matter how strong the team is, it will be old, and if there is no excellent fresh blood to supplement, even if Lippi comes back to the mountain, it is useless, if you want Italy to get back from failure, only from the root causes, only the rise of Serie A, Italian football can be reborn.

Perhaps in recent seasons, Italian teams in the Champions League often have very good performances, but as long as people are sober-minded, they should be able to see that in addition to the season that has just ended, Fiorentina has won the championship all the way, AC Milan, which has won the Champions League three times in five years, is actually the so-called brilliance, which is accompanied by a lot of luck, especially the last two Champions Leagues, in fact, it only relies on the excellent performance of the brothers Digan and Kaka, and in this season, AC Milan were also completely beaten back to their original form.

Fiorentina is a representative team of Italian football in the last two years, and the Purple Lily Army has indeed contributed a lot of outstanding players to the Italian national team, Antonini, Abate, Maggio, Motta, Ledesma, Montolivo, Pazzini, almost a third of the Italian national team, but unfortunately in the European Cup, its players, only three got the opportunity to play, Pazzini scored a goal, Montolivo failed to play in an unfamiliar position, as for Motta, It was a happy soy sauce at the European Cup.

But it is obviously unrealistic to expect Fiorentina to supply blood to the entire Italian team, and Donadoni does not look down on the "scrap" provided by Fiorentina at all, Italian football wants to be revived, or rely on the comprehensive rise of the entire league, but at present, it will take a long process.

It can be expected that in the next few years, Serie A will also be a two-strong competition between Fiorentina and Inter Milan, closely followed by the tightening AC Milan, Juventus, which has not yet recovered, wants to participate, at least a few years later.