Euro 2020: Flawless Italy cruises into Round of 16, defeats Switzerland 3-0
Jun 17, 2021
Rome [Italy], June 17 : Manuel Locatelli bagged a brace as flawless Italy defeated Switzerland 3-0 here at the Stadio Olimpico to become the first side into the last-16 of the Euro 2020.
Match started at a good pace for Italy as Chiellini had a goal ruled out for handball just minutes before Sassuolo midfielder Locatelli opened the scoring after 26 minutes with a close-range effort in the Group A clash. He then doubled their lead in the second half, giving Sommer no chance of saving his low shot from outside the box.
Lazio's Ciro Immobile then wrapped it up late on, with the keeper unable to keep out his long-range strike despite getting both hands to it.
Azzurri has now 10 wins in a row without conceding in a run of 29 without defeat in all competitions. Roberto Mancini's side is now top of Group A with six points from two games, with six goals scored and none conceded, two points clear of Wales who beat Turkey 2-0 earlier.
Following 3-0 wins against Turkey and Switzerland, Italy is only the second side in EUROs history to open their tournament with consecutive wins by a 3+ goal margin, after the Netherlands in 2008 (3-0 vs Italy, 4-1 vs France) as stated by Opta.
The final round of Group A fixtures takes place on Sunday with Italy hosting Wales at the Stadio Olimpico with Switzerland traveling to Baku for a crucial encounter with Turkey at the same time.
