Kevin De Bruyne goal leads way to easy win for Belgium against Italy
Belgium 3 - 1 ItalyHome team scorers
Jan Vertonghen 13
Kevin De Bruyne 74
Michy Batshuayi 82
Away team scorers
Antonio Candreva 4
Graziano Pellè in action for Italy
Kevin De Bruyne scored one goal and added an assist in Belgium’s victory over Italy which underscored their position as Fifa’s top-ranked team and further established them as leading challengers for next summer’s European Championship.
After Antonio Candreva gave Italy an early lead, Belgium came back with goals from Jan Vertonghen, De Bruyne and Michy Batshuayi in a sparkling performance.
By the end, Belgium were toying with Italy, the four-times World Cup winners, clearly looking in need of rebuilding before going to France.
Belgium continue to impress with players that dominate the Premier League and have a big impact in the French and Italian leagues too.
And even in the absence of their injured goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois, Liverpool’s Simon Mignolet proved he is an adequate replacement with several key saves when the game was still tight. “I have an excellent goalie,” the Belgium coach, Marc Wilmots, said.
Italy took the lead in the third minute when Graziano Pellè tested Mignolet with a low drive and Candreva swooped in ahead of the flatfooted Belgian defence to slot home the rebound.
Italy could not live up to their reputation for being the best to protect a lead. After 13 minutes, De Bruyne placed a curling corner kick on the forehead of the unmarked Vertonghen and the bouncing header from the defender left Gianluigi Buffon with no chance.
And in the 74th minute, Leonardo Bonucci gave away the ball in defence and De Bruyne capitalised by bouncing it past Buffon.
Belgium capped their comeback when Yannick Carrasco and Batshuayi combined through the centre for another excellent goal.
“The spirit of the group is perfect,” Wilmots said. “Collectively, we kept our cool, came back, and won.”
In the second half, Italy came closest to scoring when Eder hit the underside of the bar in the 61st minute before several substitutions by both sides.
It was Belgium’s first game as the leaders in the world rankings but Wilmots treated it like a preparation game for next year’s European Championship with several experiments. In the absence of captain Vincent Kompany, the defence often looked wobbly, especially with Trabzonspor’s Luis Pedro Cavanda insecure on the right.
Italy was without the injured Marco Verratti and are struggling to find a replacement in the playmaker position, meaning Andrea Pirlo, who is 36 and playing in the United States, could still play a major role.
Guardian
