Italy won the consolation bronze medals in the Nations League finals, adding to a disappointing week for hosts the Netherlands, when they defeated the Dutch 3-2 in Sunday’s third-place playoff match at the Twente Stadium.
Federico Dimarco scored at the far post in the 6th minute and Davide Frattesi added another goal from close range in the 20th to give Italy a comfortable halftime advantage.
The Dutch, on the other hand, set up a strong second-half comeback, making three attacking changes at halftime, laying siege to Italy’s goal and seeing Steven Bergwijn score in the 68th minute.
Federico Chiesa restored the 2-goal lead in the 73rd minute after a counterattack, but there was a thrilling conclusion as Georginio Wijnaldum scored a second goal for the Dutch in the 89th. Despite the addition of 9 minutes of stoppage time, Italy held out under home pressure for the win.
Italy made a strong start, pulling together a number of quick passes before Giacomo Raspadori backheeled the ball to Dimarco for a thundering finish.
The shock of the goal quiet the home crowd and there was barely any noise 14 minutes later when Frattesi scored on a lucky rebound, chesting the ball down before squeezing it home.
Wijnaldum’s late goal gave hopes of a comeback, but the Dutch, who had great aspirations of winning the tournament at home, were defeated 4-2 in extra time by Croatia in Wednesday’s first semi-final.