Euro 2000 final - Rotterdam... or anywhere.

July 2 2020.  The day of the Euro 2000 final in Rotterdam.  A tournament that I was lucky enough to have tickets for.  Games in Bruges and Amsterdam for the group games whetted the appetite but tickets for the final was a once in a lifetime opportunity.  As the tournament progressed and Italy went further it crossed my mind that I could actually see the Azzuri in a major international tournament, and the final would be the icing on the cake.  

Just the small matter of beating the host nation Holland stood in the way, and the odds were heavily stacked against them.  It went to a penalty shootout and the Azzuri had done it... they were in a major final and I would be there.

A flight into Amsterdam then a train to Rotterdam gave enough time to spend the day soaking up the atmosphere in the city centre. The day had such a buzz about it and fans mingled all over the city, not many people asked about my Wigan Athletic shirt.  This was the pre Premier League era and  'Little Wigan' were still relatively unknown in Italian and French homes.

On the quest for food my mate and I walked past restaurant after restaurant until we literally reached the ‘Other Side of the Tracks’.  We had hit the roughest part of Rotterdam and hastily retreated before anyone spotted us, and made it back to the relative safety of the French fans.

We then took the tram to De Kuip ( and sat behind ex Arsenal striker Alan Smith), and went into the stadium to find our seats were in the Italian end. It was written in the stars...

France ,who had beaten Italy on penalties two years before in the World Cup quarter-finals on the way to winning the World Cup, once again stood in the way.

When the opposition is Italy, however, with their revolving door of gifted players and steely resolve, it was never going to be easy.

Managed by Dino Zoff, this Azzurri side was efficient and compact, staying true to the old-school Catenaccio tactics, having conceded only two goals so far in the tournament.  They weren’t about to roll over for anyone. 

Finals are often nervous affairs with neither side wanting to make an early mistake. The fear of losing can far outweigh the desire to win. Italy were underdogs, but they produced a far more expansive display than had been anticipated and dominated possession for large spells.  

The game started furiously. Italy had plenty of early pressure with Roma’s Marco Delvecchio proving a nuisance up-front. Henry provided the French threat, unleashing a couple of trademark snapshots before being on the receiving end of several friendly tackles from the Italian midfield, the chief culprit among them being Luigi Di Biagio. 

But in truth, the final didn’t come alive until the second half when, in the 53rd minute, a moment of genius blew the final wide open.   Delvecchio – who was selected by manager Dino Zoff at the expense of both Alessandro Del Piero and Filippo Inzaghi - broke the deadlock.

The goal was orchestrated by the man who had provided Italy’s offensive creativity throughout the tournament - Francesco Totti.  With his back to goal just outside of the penalty area, and with seemingly little in the way of passing possibilities, Totti paused and drew in two French defenders before executing an inch-perfect backheeled through-ball that set Gianluca Pessotto free on the wing with France’s offside trap completely fooled. Pessotto’s accurate cross was guided in on the volley by Delvecchio.

Now, Italy had to protect their lead for 35 minutes – and injury time – to win their first European Championship for 32 years.  Zoff sent on Del Piero to act as a focal point for counter-attacks, and his plan proved effective as the substitute was sent clear on goal twice in the closing minutes. 

The striker, however, was somehow unable to hit the net on either occasion, putting one shot wide and hitting the other straight at Fabian Barthez.  He was left to rue those misses when, 15 seconds from the final whistle, substitute Sylvain Wiltord slid a 94th-minute equaliser underneath a despairing Francesco Toldo.

With 13 minutes of extra time played, the Italy defence was caught uncharacteristically playing around with possession deep in their own half.   Robert Pires nipped in and danced past two tackles on the left wing before dinking in a cross from close to the byline.   Striker David Trezeguet, who had recently signed for Juventus to become Del Piero’s new team-mate, was to be the man who crashed home to win the match and break Italian hearts.

For many, this was unfairly heralded as a victory of good over evil due to Zoff’s reliance on conservative tactics – ones that had been so successful in getting the Azzurri to the final. 

20 years on, Del Piero himself still says “Losing in the final really hurts, but that’s how life goes, We then played against France [in the final who we’d played] on a number of other competitions, where we had the opportunity to get even. Losing that match certainly hurt."

Del Piero says that the defeat still rankles and remains at a loss to explain how Italy threw the match away.

“I don’t know, even now,” he says. “When you lose matches like that, and the opposition scores the equaliser in the last minute, and then scores the golden goal, it blows your mind. It is really awful, you don’t want to believe it.

"From then on we had to face reality: we came really close to realising a dream, which did not come true. You wake up the day after, and try to be the best because, despite the previous match, you have to think about the future."

The Euros haven't been kind to Italy since then.   They failed to get out of the group stages in 2004, losing out on goal difference to Denmark.  In 2008 they lost on penalties in the Quarter finals to eventual winners Spain and faced the Spanish again in the 2012 final, but lost 4-0 in Kiev.

Italy gained a smidgen of revenge on Spain by eliminating them from the 2016 tournament in the Round of 16, but a quarter final defeat on penalties to Germany sent the Azzuri home early again.

21 years on from the despair in Rotterdam, can Italy finally go one better and be called the Best Team in Europe?  It will be a very tough task but one which always brings the best out of the Azzuri.