More Saturday drama out of Group D. The big news before the match was that Buffon injured his ankle during training the night before. No doubt many were flashing back to 2010 when he was injured during a game and couldn’t finish out the group stage matches. We all know how well that worked out for Italy. Prandelli wisely decided to leave him out of the starting line-up and handed Sirigu his first World Cup start. And the PSG man did not disappoint.
The Sound…
…and the Fury.
England: Sturridge 37’
Italy: Marchisio 35’; Balotelli 50’
Lineups:
England: Sturridge, Cahill, Hart, Welbeck, Henderson, Jagielka, Baines, Rooney, Gerrard, Johnson, Sterling
Italy: Barzagli, Chiellini, Paletta, Balotelli, Darmian, Sirigu, Candreva, Pirlo, Marchisio, Verratti, De Rossi
FIFA Man of the Match: Balotelli, ITA
HB&HB Headband of the Match: all the ones Pirlo no longer uses
Pre-Game
So much happening here; where to look first?
http://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/england-fans-cheer-prior-to-the-2014-fifa-world-cup-brazil-news-photo/450620390
Apparently feathers were the fashion accessory du jour for both sets of fans
http://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/italy-fans-show-support-prior-to-the-2014-fifa-world-cup-news-photo/450618810
What are the odds he convinced them he was actually at the Crusades?
http://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/italy-fans-pose-for-a-photograph-with-an-england-fan-ahead-news-photo/450617614
Pitch preparation? Xavi-approved. Pitch condition? Not Xavi-approved.
http://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/the-field-is-spraid-with-water-before-the-start-of-a-group-news-photo/450617942
Shrek getting in on the action
http://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/an-england-fan-holds-a-shrek-doll-as-another-kisses-a-news-photo/450619436
“I got you, little buddy. Just you and me. All. The. Way.”
http://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/italys-midfielder-andrea-pirlo-and-italys-midfielder-news-photo/450620916
“Where did I leave my phone? I’m going through selfie withdrawal!”
http://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/jack-wilshere-of-england-looks-on-during-the-2014-fifa-news-photo/450621258
First Half:
There was singing and hugging and handshakes and slaps on the back. And then there was the kick-off. England’s young attackers were eager to start and show their ambition. Case in point:
The BBC thought so too.
“Raise your hands if you thought it went in”
Talk about a heart in the mouth moment for both groups of fans!
Next up was Henderson with a powerful shot from the edge of the box. Sirigu was there thankfully to make the save. Some uncharacteristic errors from Italy early on were gifting England with great chances.
Italy started to take control of possession about 10 minutes in with Pirlo “doin’ his thang” and Balotelli and Marchisio making some positive runs at the England defense.
“My ball! My ball!”
Paletta almost gifted a goal to England with a poor pass. Luckily for him Welbeck sent the ball straight into the advertising instead. (I can just hear the Manchester United fans now…)
Uh, not sure what happened there.
Italy finally got their first real look at the goal 20 minutes in, thanks to a great strike from Candreva. The swerving shot almost caught Hart wrong-footed. Italy had the momentum now and a well-timed short corner at 35’ coupled with a Pirlo dummy = GOAL!! Marchisio saw what Pirlo intended, swooped into space on the edge of the box, and fired the pass into the bottom corner.
“Let us skip in joy and in good health”
http://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/claudio-marchisio-of-italy-celebrates-scoring-the-opening-news-photo/450627552
Play reset and…GOAL!! Sterling picked up the ball, passed it to Rooney who quickly broke down the left and sent one incredible cross to the back post where Sturridge was perfectly placed to beat Sirigu. Yowza!
Never gets old
But I’m partial to how he celebrated when he was 14-years-old.
“Group effort”
Fans at the Isle of Wight Festival get in on the action
Whew, that was an exciting 3 minutes. So exciting that England’s team celebration took a man down.
“Did you see what happened?”
England physiotherapist Gary Lewin dislocated and fractured his ankle during the fun. He had to be stretchered off, likely to his (somewhat) embarrassment. Wish you a speedy recovery Gary!
#allin
Balotelli then tried this cheeky move but was denied by Jagielka.
Candreva gave it another try too before the end of the half, only to see his shot cannon off the woodwork.
Second Half:
So, what’s the best way to start a second half? GOAL!! Suuuuuuper Mariooooooooooooo! Candreva wasted no time getting his attack juices flowing again. This time he aimed the ball towards Balotelli who headed it home with ease.
Mwah!
England almost evened it up immediately, with Sturridge forcing Chiellini to make an important clearance in the box. The battle between those two was a highlight of the match,
Italy made the first substitution of the day at minute 57, bringing on Motta on Verratti. A little bit of drama here, as Motta was born in Brazil and chose to play for Italy. No boos, no hisses, all good in the hood. England brought on Barkley for Welbeck at 61’. Again, no boos, no hisses.
One of the best match-ups of the game = Cahill vs Balotelli
It was clear by the hour mark that neither team was willing to give an inch. Both wanted the next goal and quickly. But they still took time to take care of each other in the heat.
Respect! Chiellini and Marchisio helping Sterling, who was a menace to them the whole game
Italy swapped out Balotelli for Immobile in the 73rd minute, and England brought on Wilshire for Henderson. Both arrived just in time to stake their place on the pitch for witnessing this dramatic event.
Not one of Rooney’s finest moments.
On came the last two substitutions of the match. Candreva went off for Parolo and, to the concern of all English fans, Sturridge limped off the pitch for Lallana. It didn’t look too serious but Hodgson made the right call.
Even with the changes, neither team could muster up enough of a run to get another goal. But, ya know, why run when you can work with a dead ball instead? Cahill brought down Motta in extra time, gifting Italy with a free kick in Pirlo’s sweet spot. And you know what he did?
Almost had a ball boy incident right after
Joe Hart letting Pirlo know what he (and all of us) thought of it
Thierry Henry letting us know what he thought of it: “I think Pirlo is that good that he meant to hit the crossbar from that free kick.”
One last, brilliant tackle from Cahill after that to stop Immobile and this match came to a close.
Victory for the Azzurri!
“And what did we learn today?”
They didn’t win, but England showed some balls in this match. No one has picked them to go far in the tournament, but with Sterling having now gotten one game under his belt you can bet he will be doubly hungry to start scoring and winning.
– hopechaser (twitter: hopechaser11)
Of Headbands and Heartbreak
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Of Headbands and Heartbreak... 
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