Euro 2024: Italy survive Albania scare
Italy 2 - 1 Albania
Holders Italy overcome a huge scare from group outsiders Albania.
Italy recovered from the shock of conceding the fastest goal ever scored at a European Championship to beat Albania 2-1 with Alessandro Bastoni and Nicolò Barella ensuring the defending champions made a winning start.
Such a narrow margin of defeat may prove useful to Albania’s hopes of scraping third place in the group of death. They will almost certainly need to win their next game though. Not an easy task.
Nedim Bajrami’s emphatic finish set a new record for the fastest goal in European Championship history, lifting the roof off a stadium that had never experienced anything like the Albanian influx, which kept the atmosphere electric throughout.
Within 23 seconds, Bajrami ensured that this already intense occasion would go down in history. It was inevitable Albania would start aggressively, spurred on by a noisy support that filled at least three-quarters of the venue. Italy wasn't ready. Left-back Federico Di Marco's throw-in, level with his own ‘D’, was aimed back towards Bastoni but fell short, allowing Bajrami to pounce and hammer it past Gianluigi Donnarumma from the corner of the six-yard box.
Italy were slow to react, but once they did, they took control.
Spalletti's men pressed energetically, regaining possession to create chances and threaten further damage. Winger Chiesa was particularly impressive, dribbling forward easily despite the number of Albanian shirts around the box. Italy were well-drilled, passing intelligently to try to pull Albania's defence out of shape, although striker Scamacca did little to impress when the ball came his way. Their attacking intent ultimately fizzled out, but the victory never looked in doubt.
Italy are a team in transition, with a new manager and a markedly different squad from Roberto Mancini's group who beat England on penalties in the last Euros final. Tough group games against Croatia and Spain remain as they look to defend their title, but Saturday's win—despite the early blip—was a strong start to their campaign.
Albanian fans have a moment to savour despite defeat.
Albania had only scored one major tournament goal before Saturday, but Bajrami's strike was special enough to provide their second. It broke a 20-year-old record, beating the 67 seconds it took Dmitri Kirichenko to score for Russia against Greece in Euro 2004.
Sylvinho's side faces a tough group, and progressing to the knockout stage looks unlikely. However, whether or not they advance, this year's tournament will hold a special place in Albanian fans' hearts for years to come, and Bajrami's record will be hard to beat.
The best reaction
An amazing start from Albania last night.https://t.co/3cLJ3IbFkJ https://t.co/OrTjpkv9wH
— European Super Football (@ESFootballNews) June 16, 2024
Paul, a Manchester City fan from Stockport, said: "Italy proved in this game that they can be dangerous but also that they are eminently beatable."
Mark, a Rangers fan from Preston, really enjoyed this match: "That was an amazing start from Albania. However, the reaction from Italy was amazing. You can see what their boss Luciano Spalletti is trying to do. They want to control games, find the pockets, open the game up, find Federico Dimarco and Federico Chiesa. However, they have a weakness at the back. That is very unusual for them."
