- Dave Donnelly
- Sun, May 19 2019
Dave Donnelly reports from Tallaght Stadium
There’s a school of thought, given recent events at Anfield, that 3-0 is the most dangerous lead in football.
For a time, it looked like the Netherlands may learn that lesson in Tallaght on Sunday evening as Italy attempted to launch the unlikeliest of comebacks – if we can consider any comeback unlikely anymore.
Goals from Sontje Hansen, Mohamed Bannis and Ian Maatsen had given the Dutch a seemingly unassailable half-time lead against a hitherto unadventurous Italy side.
Italy coach Carmine Nunziata sprung Lorenzo Colombo at the break to ask ‘just one more’ question of a Netherlands’ defence who’d dealt comfortably so far with their meagre offerings.
The Milan striker pulled one back 11 minutes later with a stunning first-time strike and Italy had plenty of chances to reduce the gap further before substitute Naci Unuvar made it safe.
The 15-year-old Ajax playmaker became the youngest player to score in an under-17 European Championships final before Colombo pulled another back in the dying minutes.
The Italians, who played cat-and-mouse with Portugal and France in the previous knockouts to reach the final, set out to do much the same versus the free-scoring Netherlands.
Playing a narrow trio of Franco Tongya, Nicolo Cudrig and Sebastiano Esposito up front, Italy looked to crowd the middle of the field and frustrate the Dutch.
To little effect, as it happened, for Peter van der Veen’s side were too streetwise in the opening half and picked off the Italians with creative lines of running and fluid passing.
One such string of one-touch passes very nearly saw Brian Brobbey tee up Bannis for the opener, but some desperate defending from the Italians closed the door.
Another slick passing move saw Hansen backheel to Brobbey, who in turn teed up captain Kenneth Taylor, but he blasted his shot over.
There was already a sense of inevitability about the Dutch opener and it arrived after 20 minutes, Bannis’ curling shot parried by Marco Molla into the path of Hansen, who cushioned home the rebound.
The physically imposing Brobbey caused the Italian backline nightmares with his lateral running but he passed up a good chance to make it 2-0 when he pulled his shot across goal.
Good Italian play resulted in half-chances for Nicolo Cudrig, who couldn’t turn his shot inside the near post, and Esposito, who had the ball taken off his toe as he wound to shoot.
A mistake on the edge of his box from Italy captain Simone Panada, compounded by a lunge on Bannis led to the Netherlands’ second seven minutes before the break.
Liverpool full-back Ki-Jana Hoever cracked his free kick off the inside of the right-hand post, and this time Bannis was on hand to turn the loose ball into the net.
Two became three on the stroke of half-time as a set-piece from the right was only half-cleared and Maatsen smashed in an unstoppable shot off the post from 25 yards.
The introduction of Colombo at half-time offered Italy something different and it was his cross for Esposito that should have seen Italy pull one back, but he dithered and saw his shot blocked.
From the resulting corner, however, the Dutch could only turn the ball to the edge of the box, where Colombo was waiting to fire a first-time volley left-footed into the top corner.
The Dutch were briefly rattled and struggled to contain the resurgent Italians, who went closer when Colombo set up Tongya, and again when Colombo nodded Tongya’s cross wide.
Colombo broke through on the left once more and forced a top-class low stop from keeper Calvin Raatsie, and van der Veen belatedly made changes to stem the flow.
Uruvar justified the move within 90 seconds of his introduction for Hansen, dancing through three challenges before planting the ball in the net with the aid of a deflection.
The fourth seemed to knock the wind out of the Italians but they did continue to press, sub Nikola Sekulov volleying wastefully over when teed up by Esposito.
Colombo handed Italy a feint lifeline a minute from time as he scored yet another stunning individual goal, smashing home from south of 25 yards, but it proved too little, too late.
Netherlands: Calvin Raatsie; Ki-Jana Hoever (Joost de Schutter 90+2), Melayro Bogarde, Devyne Rensch, Anass Salah-Eddine (Neraysho Kasanwirjo 69); Kenneth Taylor, Ian Maatsen, Mohamed Taabouni (Dirk Proper 87); Sontje Hansen (Naci Unuvar 69), Naoufal Bannis (Soulyman Allouche 90+2), Brian Brobbey.
Subs not used: Tein Troost (gk), Steven van der Sloot, Mohamed Sankoh, Syb van Ottele.
Booked: Calvin Raatsie (79), Ki-Jana Hoever (90+1), Naci Unuvar (90+2).
Italy: Marco Molla; Francesco Lamanna, Christian Dall Mura, Lorenzo Pirola, Lorenzo Moretti (Matteo Ruggeri 46); Simone Panada (Nicholas Bonfanti 90+2), Michael Brentan (Nikola Sekulov 47), Iyenoma Destiny Udogie; Franco Tongya (Samuel Giovane 82), Nicolo Cudrig (Lorenzo Colombo 46), Sebastiano Esposito.
Subs not used: Manuel Gasparini (gk), Niccolo Squizzato, Alessandro Pio Riccio, Alesandro Arlotti.
Booked: Nicolo Cudrig (42), Simone Panada (44), Christian Dalla Mura (56).
Referee: Espen Eskas (Norway).
Attendance: 5,952 (official).
Extratime.ie Player of the Match: Naoufal Bannis (Netherlands).
