5 Italy players who underperformed against Spain | UEFA Nations League semi-final
European champions Italy hosted Spain at the San Siro in the UEFA Nations League semi-finals on Wednesday night. Playing at home, the Azzurri were the favorites to progress to the UEFA Nations League final. Surprisingly, Italy were visibly outplayed by a much-changed, injury-struck Spain side, who took the game away in the first half itself.
Manchester City forward Ferran Torres scored the first goal for Spain in the 17th minute, converting from Mikel Oyarzabal’s excellent early cross. He doubled Spain’s tally just before the half-time whistle, this time through an excellent cushioned header. Lorenzo Pellegrini pulled one back for Italy in the closing minutes, but it only turned out to be a consolation in the end.
The 2-1 defeat marked Italy’s first loss in 37 games. The heroes of Euro 2020 were well below their standards and involuntarily contributed to the end of Italy’s world-record run.
Today, we will take a closer look at Italy’s disappointing defeat and tell you which five players underperformed in the UEFA Nations League semi-final against Spain.
#5 Giovanni Di Lorenzo
Giovanni Di Lorenzo was Italy’s first-choice right-back for the entire Euro 2020 tournament. The Napoli man did not put a foot wrong and was instrumental at keeping top-rated attackers in check.
Surprisingly, in the UEFA Nations League semi-final, he looked like a shadow of his rock-solid self. Di Lorenzo was stretched thin by Marcos Alonso and Mikel Oyarzabal and was reduced to a helpless spectator for both goals.
Watching the replay of the Italy game.
My god Di Lorenzo is stinking up the pitch 🤢
He's making Alonso and Orygami look like prime Marcelo and Ronny
Offensively, too, he was underwhelming and created nothing for Italy’s frontmen. He improved a bit in the second half after the hosts switched to a five-man system, but it was not enough to make a difference.
#4 Jorginho
European Player of the Year Jorginho was meant to be one of the standout performers against Spain. Unfortunately, he was barely visible in the match, spending the entirety of the game being outclassed by Koke and Sergio Busquets.
Jorginho is the worst UEFA POTY winner ever, he’s not even top 50 in the world.
Neither did he misplace many passes, nor was he awful in possession. However, for a player of his caliber, someone who is a Ballon d’Or candidate, he did put on a rather forgettable show.
Jorginho was stagnant in terms of attacking as well. The Chelsea central midfielder did not get the opportunity to push forward and failed to dispatch a single shot at goal.