Mattia Zaccagni notched a buzzer-beating goal for the Azzurri to rescue a point and effectively eliminate the Checkered Ones.
Italy were seconds away from accepting a third-placed finish in Group B at Euro 2024 but Lazio's Mattia Zaccagni notched a late equaliser for Luciano Spalletti’s men in the 1-1 draw.
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Croatia vs Italy
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Monday’s draw in Leipzig could have ended in consecutive defeats for the defending champions — who needed a point to end second — after Luka Modric scored in minute 55, moments after being denied by Gianluigi Donnarumma from 12 yards.
That goal took Zlatko Dalic's men above Italy into second but Zaccagni's curled finish into the top right corner nicked a point for the defending champions, who ended above perfect Spain with four points.
Pulse Sports select 4 statistics from Monday’s tie in Leipzig.
- According to Opta, Luka Modric (38 years and 289 days) is the oldest player to ever score at the European Championship finals, a feat that could be eclipsed by Portugal’s Cristiano Ronaldo.
- Modric also tied Ivan Perisic (4) for the most goals scored for Croatia in the competition's history.
- Donnarumma may have conceded to Modric, but the Italy goalkeeper became the youngest shot-stopper to reach 10 appearances the quickest at 25 years and 120 days.
- Italy’s Alessandro Bastoni won possession 12 times against Croatia, the highest of any defender in a single game at Euro 2024.
What comes next?
Spalletti’s men will face Group A runners-up Switzerland in the round of 16 in Berlin, keen to avoid an early exit in the June 29 fixture.