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The national teams of Italy and Portugal drew on Monday in Geneva with a goal each in the second match of Group B of the Eurocup in Switzerland, a result that keeps Portuguese hopes alive for reaching the quarterfinals and already qualifies Spain for this round. Spain will play for the top spot against Italy next Friday.
The Italian team had the ticket to the knockout stages in their hands after a balanced match, where they had the best chances until they took the lead on the scoreboard. However, they couldn’t hold off the final push from their opponent, who improved their performance compared to their debut against the world champions.
Francisco Neto made several changes to his starting eleven compared to the 5-0 loss against Spain, especially bringing in Kika Nazareth and Patricia Morais as goalkeeper. These changes improved their team, although Italy had the best chances in the first half, with the Portuguese goalkeeper making crucial saves and the woodwork denying Cecilia Salvai’s header.
After the break, Portugal decided to step up and became more dangerous, especially with the introduction of Jéssica Silva. However, the Italians struck with a great goal from Cristiana Girelli that brought them closer to the quarterfinals with about twenty minutes left, plus injury time.
The Portuguese team, already eliminated, pushed forward and had their best moments, with a virtual equalizer that was ruled out by VAR for an offside from Diana Silva. It was just a warning of the 1-1 goal that would come shortly after through Diana Gomes, and after Carole Costa hit the crossbar.
From there, the Portuguese team did not settle and looked for a second goal to increase their chances of advancing in Group B. However, it was Italy who had the best chance, with Morais ending her great night with another fantastic save. Therefore, Italy only needs a draw against Spain on Friday to advance to the knockout stages along with the world champions. Portugal, on the other hand, will need to defeat the eliminated Belgium by a large margin and hope that the team led by Montse Tomé also beats Italy by a significant margin.