Luis Enrique of Spain in action against Demetrio Albertini of Italy during the 1994 World Cup.

Euro 2020: Five top Italy v Spain clashes ahead of semi-final



Italy and Spain will meet at a fourth consecutive European Championship when they play in Tuesday's semi-final at Wembley.

The European heavyweights have a long history, and here are some of their more memorable encounters.

1994 World Cup quarter-final: Italy 2 Spain 1

At the time of the World Cup in the United States Spain were seen as the great underachievers, but they fancied their chances against Arrigo Sacchi's Italy in Foxborough, Massachusetts.

Dino Baggio gave Italy a 25th-minute lead before controversy struck early in the second half when Luis Enrique - the current Spain coach - went down in the box holding his face. An elbow from Mauro Tassotti left him bloodied and with a broken nose.

Jose Luis Caminero equalised for Spain but Roberto Baggio's late effort took Italy through and they went on to lose the final on penalties to Brazil. Tassotti was not punished for the elbow at the time but was later given an eight-match ban.

Euro 2008 quarter-final: Spain 0 Italy 0 (Spain won 4-2 on penalties)

Spain had lost in their previous five quarter-final appearances at major tournaments coming into their clash with Italy, the reigning world champions, in Vienna in 2008.

Without the suspended Andrea Pirlo and Gennaro Gattuso, Italy held Spain at arm's length all the way to the end of extra time. After a goalless 120 minutes they went to penalties where Iker Casillas saved from Daniele De Rossi and Antonio Di Natale.

Cesc Fabregas converted the decisive spot-kick as Spain made it beyond the last eight at a major tournament for the first time since losing the Euro 1984 final. They went on to beat Germany 1-0 in the final and begin their era of domination.

Euro 2012 final: Spain 4 Italy 0

After adding the 2010 World Cup to the European Championship they had won in Austria, Spain went to Ukraine and Poland for Euro 2012 looking to claim a historic hat-trick.

Their campaign started against Italy in Gdansk as the sides played out a 1-1 draw, Fabregas cancelling out Di Natale's opener. Vicente del Bosque's Spain went on top their group before beating France and then overcoming Portugal on penalties to reach the final.

Waiting for them in Kiev were Italy, who defeated England on penalties in the last eight and then Germany in the semi-finals.

They were blown away by a brilliant Spanish side, with David Silva and Jordi Alba scoring in the first half and late goals by Fernando Torres and Juan Mata completing the rout as Spain became champions of Europe again.


Euro 2016 last 16: Italy 2 Spain 0

Italy's reward for topping their Euro 2016 group ahead of Belgium was another meeting with Spain and a chance to gain revenge for that mauling in Kiev.

The Italians had also endured a miserable 2014 World Cup in Brazil, going out in the group stage, but they were now a different proposition under Antonio Conte. Spain, meanwhile, were on the way down having also gone out in the first round in Brazil.

In front of more than 76,000 at the Stade de France, Italy came out on top as Giorgio Chiellini put them in front and Gianluigi Buffon held Spain at bay before Graziano Pelle sealed the win.


2018 World Cup qualifying: Spain 3 Italy 0

The most recent meeting of the sides came in Madrid in September 2017 when Spain triumphed 3-0 in qualifying for the World Cup in Russia with Isco scoring twice and Alvaro Morata adding the third.

The sides had drawn 1-1 in Turin a year earlier and Spain's win here effectively secured first place and qualification.

Italy had to settle for a play-off, which they lost to Sweden to miss out on a World Cup for the first time since 1958.

If you go
Where to stay: Courtyard by Marriott Titusville Kennedy Space Centre has unparalleled views of the Indian River. Alligators can be spotted from hotel room balconies, as can several rocket launch sites. The hotel also boasts cool space-themed decor.

When to go: Florida is best experienced during the winter months, from November to May, before the humidity kicks in.

How to get there: Emirates currently flies from Dubai to Orlando five times a week.
The drill

Recharge as needed, says Mat Dryden: “We try to make it a rule that every two to three months, even if it’s for four days, we get away, get some time together, recharge, refresh.” The couple take an hour a day to check into their businesses and that’s it.

Stick to the schedule, says Mike Addo: “We have an entire wall known as ‘The Lab,’ covered with colour-coded Post-it notes dedicated to our joint weekly planner, content board, marketing strategy, trends, ideas and upcoming meetings.”

Be a team, suggests Addo: “When training together, you have to trust in each other’s abilities. Otherwise working out together very quickly becomes one person training the other.”

Pull your weight, says Thuymi Do: “To do what we do, there definitely can be no lazy member of the team.” 

The specs
Engine: 2.7-litre 4-cylinder Turbomax
Power: 310hp
Torque: 583Nm
Transmission: 8-speed automatic
Price: From Dh192,500
On sale: Now
Ain Dubai in numbers

126: The length in metres of the legs supporting the structure

1 football pitch: The length of each permanent spoke is longer than a professional soccer pitch

16 A380 Airbuses: The equivalent weight of the wheel rim.

9,000 tonnes: The amount of steel used to construct the project.

5 tonnes: The weight of each permanent spoke that is holding the wheel rim in place

192: The amount of cable wires used to create the wheel. They measure a distance of 2,4000km in total, the equivalent of the distance between Dubai and Cairo.

The Sand Castle

Director: Matty Brown

Stars: Nadine Labaki, Ziad Bakri, Zain Al Rafeea, Riman Al Rafeea

Rating: 2.5/5

Updated: July 06, 2021, 3:10 AM