Italy just pulled off an absolutely massive 3-1 victory over mighty France at the iconic San Siro in Milan, and seriously, this was pure passion from start to finish. It wasn’t always pretty, far from it, with a glaring error from Gianluigi Donnarumma and even a missed penalty from one of the Esposito brothers. But when the final whistle blew, none of that mattered. Under the Milan skies, the Azzurri found a way to win, leaning hard on that undeniable trait we all know they have: pure grit and a fierce will to get the job done.
A Night of Desire for the Azzurri
This was a statement win, period. Roberto Mancini’s squad wanted to show the world they could still hang with the best, especially after missing a third straight World Cup. They did it with a 3-1 comeback that had every Italian smiling. Forget substance, this was all about desire. Italy gave up possession, sure, but they never, ever gave up control. Mancini pulled a genius move in the 62nd minute, bringing on Inter stalwart Federico Dimarco for Monza’s Nicolò Cambiaghi. What happened next? Dimarco snagged an assist that set up Davide Frattesi for a goal. Then, they got another penalty, and Pio Esposito buried it for the 3-1 lead. This isn’t just a win, folks. Italy now sits atop their group, and they’re looking to get something over Belgium to lock down a spot in the quarterfinals. France, despite the loss, is still in a good spot, needing just a point as they prep for Türkiye. But tonight? Tonight was Italian poetry, and the Azzurri absolutely rejoiced. It’s been way too long since we’ve seen that kind of fire.
Kane’s Record-Breaking Night and England’s Shuffle
Over at Wembley, England bagged a 2-1 win against a tough Croatia side, but the real story was all about Harry Kane. The man celebrated his record-breaking 126th appearance for the national team in style, scoring from the spot after parading his Ballon d’Or in front of the roaring crowd before the match. Chelsea’s Morgan Rogers opened the scoring in the 24th minute, but Jarell Quansah let Petar Sučić equalize later in the second half. Didn’t matter. Five minutes later, Kane, who is just built for these moments, reclaimed the lead for the third-placed team at the World Cup. Manager Thomas Tuchel had his hands full with a bunch of absences, including Djed Spence, Ezri Konsa, and Marc Guéhi. He had to reshuffle the defense, rolling out a rotated lineup with Lewis Hall, Dan Burn, Quansah, and Trent Alexander-Arnold. Tuchel probably wanted a clean sheet, but with that kind of defensive shake-up, he’s gotta be reasonably happy with the result. Especially with Hall looking super strong out there. But let’s be real, this was Harry Kane’s night, one he’ll never forget.
What a Thursday night for Nations League football! Italy and England both showed up big, and next up for England? A monster battle in Madrid against World Cup champions Spain. Spain took care of business against Czechia thanks to a penalty from Alex Baena, who is seriously one of my favorite players in Europe right now. Get ready, because these next few matches are gonna be insane!
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Fox Sports.
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