Jonathan Liew was in Rome to witness the triumphant return of Italy to the big tournament stage. Here’s his report! Thanks for reading this MBM. See you tomorrow afternoon for the next game in Group A between Wales and Switzerland. Nighty night!
Updated
Italy made 24 attempts at goal this evening, eight of those on target. Their front three of Insigne, Immobile and Berardi were all excellent, two of them getting on the scoresheet, the other forcing the dam-breaking own goal. The captain Chiellini was immense when called upon at the back, and nearly opened the scoring with a fine header. Jorginho kept things ticking over in the middle. Pretty much a perfect start to Euro 2020 for the Italians, who must be in with a proper shout to add to their sole 1968 victory. “This has to be the worst act of Italian aggression on Turkey since the aptly-named Treaty of Ouchy in 1912,” quips Blaise Baquiche.
Updated
FULL TIME: Turkey 0-3 Italy
Nothing comes of the corner, and that’s the end of a magnificent all-round display by Italy. They were effervescent in attack, solid as ever in defence, against a very decent Turkey side. They’re now 28 matches unbeaten, and very much up for the cup!
Updated
90 min +2: Turkey flood forward. They want a consolation. Yilmaz is suddenly sent scampering into the box down the left channel. He tries to flick across Donnarumma but Chiellini slide-blocks sensationally. Italy want that clean sheet!
Updated
90 min +1: Demiral fires a hot backpass towards Cakir, who is forced into a hysterical lash out of play. Italy’s press has had Turkey in a fluster all evening.
90 min: There will be three added minutes.
89 min: London Buses dept. Dervisoglu makes a frustrated, forward’s lunge on Barella, and is quite rightly booked.
88 min: It’s been a long time coming, but here’s the first booking of Euro 2020. Soyuncu picks it up, having jumped crudely into Bernardeschi.
Updated
87 min: Barella slides in on Calhanoglu accidentally. Painful nonetheless. A sense that both sides, having put in quite the shift, would be happy to hear the full-time whistle now, for vastly different reasons.
85 min: Meras catches Berardi on the back of the leg. No point taking chances. Italy withdraw their man, replacing him with Bernardeschi. Meanwhile here’s this MBM’s co-author Mary Waltz: “Everyone. Turn your TV volume down. Click on Coltrane’s Ole. Watch Italy dance to McCoy Tyner’s rhythmic piano line. It’s wonderful.”
83 min: Turkey, as they have done for most of the match, especially during this second half, are chasing shadows.
81 min: This is the first time Italy have ever scored three goals in a European Championship game. They’ve been more than worth it. They’ve been superb. Insigne and Immobile make way for Belotti and Chiesa.
GOAL! Turkey 0-3 Italy (Insigne 79)
Cakir’s poor clearance is intercepted by Berardi. The ball’s worked out left to Insigne, via some cute interplay, Immobile sending him free. Insigne opens his body and curls into the bottom right. What a move, and what a finish!
Updated
78 min: Cristante is sent scampering free down the left. His low cross is missed by Demiral and finds Berardi, who faffs about instead of shooting. Then the flag goes up for offside. No matter, though, because ...
77 min: Italy’s corner is a non-event.
76 min: Spinazzola has been excellent tonight, always in acres out on the left. Here he is again, winning a corner off Under. Before it can be taken, Dervisoglu of Brentford replaces Karaman.
75 min: Kahveci shovels a clever pass down the inside-right channel. It drops towards Yilmaz, who runs towards the right-hand post but tries to flick a header back towards the left. He doesn’t connect. If he had, there was a fair chance Donnarumma was in trouble.
74 min: Italy make their first change as Locatelli is replaced by Cristante. “I think you meant radio controlled car,” writes Felix Wood. “Remote controllers are attached by wires. You are, as ever, completely welcome.”
72 min: The Italian fans are giving it the olés as their heroes ping it around. Any old excuse...
70 min: Turkey come again, Yilmaz and Celik combining crisply down the inside right. It’s neat play, but when they reach the edge of the box, the white shirts smother them. This might be a more progressive Italy, but they’re still masters of defence as well.
69 min: Turkey need something, and quickly. Meras wins a corner down the left ... but when it’s delivered, the whistle goes for some pointless shoving.
67 min: This has been a very impressive display from Italy, who have given Turkey the complete runaround. “How times have changed,” writes Mary Waltz. “The Italy of the eighties and nineties would have taken that one goal, hunkered down in a low block, and bled out the game. Today’s Italy hunted that second goal with vigour.”
Updated
GOAL! Turkey 0-2 Italy (Immobile 66)
It’s fair to say this had been coming. Barella is given all the time in the world, 25 yards out. He considers a shot but feeds Berardi into space on the right instead. Berardi chips long for Spinazzola, who shoots hard at Cakir from a tight angle. The keeper parries, but only to the feet of Immobile, who lashes home from six yards.
Updated
65 min: Turkey have been looking very leggy, so they make a double change. Tufan and Yokuslu, both bedraggled, are replaced by Ayhan and Kahveci.
63 min: Immobile frees Berardi into the box with a sliderule pass down the inside left. The flag goes up for offside, incorrectly so perhaps. A let-off for Turkey there.
61 min: Insigne looks for Chiellini. Turkey swarm and bundle clear. But this is attack versus defence, and a second goal looks very much on the cards. On that subject, here’s Mary Waltz: “Turkey gave a master class on how to employ a low block. Until the moment they didn’t. Now down a goal, what do they do? OK boys, try to score after not seeing the attacking half for over half the fixture.”
60 min: Turkey have been extremely rattled by the opening goal. Soyuncu needlessly wrestles Berardi to the ground out on the right, and this is a chance for Italy to load the box.
58 min: Locatelli is given all manner of time and space, and so advances on the Turkish box. He fires for the bottom right. Cakir makes a meal of turning it around the post. Another corner comes to nothing.
57 min: Tufan ships possession cheaply, allowing Berardi to scamper towards their box. Berardi offloads to Insigne on the left. His attempted curler is blocked and deflected out for a corner. Nothing comes of the set piece.
55 min: Demiral had to make some sort of effort to clear, with Immobile lurking behind for the tap-in. The Olimpico explodes into life, and Italy have the wind behind now. Spinazzola finds a little space down the left and lashes a shot straight at Cakir from a tight angle. The keeper parries.
GOAL! Turkey 0-1 Italy (Demiral 53 og)
A bit of space for Berardi down the right. He enters the box. Meras slips, and there’s some space to romp into. Berardi fires low and hard into the centre. The ball batters off Demiral’s chest at pace, and flies into the bottom right. There was nothing Demiral could do!
Updated
51 min: Under wins the ball off a dithering Jorginho and breaks upfield at hot speed. He reaches the edge of the Italian box and sends a deflected effort towards the bottom left. Donnarumma gathers.
50 min: Meras slides clumsily into Barella and takes a hefty whack in the ribs. He looks in some pain, insisting the physio comes on to check all’s well.
Updated
48 min: Yilmaz drives down the left and feeds Under on the overlap. Di Lorenzo comes across and barges the Turkish attacker to the floor. No free kick, which looks a dubious decision, Di Lorenzo making no effort whatsoever to play the ball, stepping across his man. But we play on.
47 min: Italy are on the front foot quickly, winning a corner out on the right. They waste it in comical style, Insigne and Berardi over-elaborating, the former tapping to the latter on his right, finding him offside. That was quite special.
Updated
Italy get the second half started. Both teams have made a change. Turkey have replaced Yazici with Under of Leicester City, while Italy swap Florenzi for Di Lorenzo at right back. No remote-control car delivering the ball this time round. “Was the little car at the start Insigne’s?” quips the appropriately monickered Stephen Carr, in reference to Italy’s diminutive forward. Tell you what, I wouldn’t be surprised if one of these cars takes out a player’s ankle just before kick-off. Have the operators been put through rigorous driving tests? Physios across the nation will demand to know the answer.
Half-time entertainment. Many a rabbit hole to disappear down here. Make sure you’re back in ten minutes, though.
HALF TIME: Turkey 0-0 Italy
That’s the end of the first half. Italy swarm the referee regarding that penalty kick, and are told in no uncertain style to toddle off. Everyone calms down and departs for the changing rooms.
45 min: Spinazzola dinks a cross in from the left. The ball clanks off Celik’s arm. No penalty, as the players were standing right next to each other. VAR has a quick look and eventually agrees. Referee Danny Makkelie doesn’t look particularly impressed at his work being double-checked.
Updated
44 min: ... and then it’s Turkey who suddenly look dangerous, Yilmaz chasing a long pass down the inside left and going to ground very easily upon being eased away from the ball by Chiellini. He’s very fortunate not to be booked. The good-natured response from Chiellini probably saved him there.
43 min: More Italian passing and probing. Eventually Immobile grooves his way down the inside right and larrups a shot straight at Cakir. They’re getting a little closer.
41 min: Italy are beginning to betray their frustration. Locatelli works some space down the inside-right channel but then weirdly wedges a gentle ball forward towards nobody in particular. Catching practice for Cakir.
39 min: Berardi ends a lengthy Italian passing move with a frustrated whack over the bar from distance. Turkey haven’t showed much in attack, but they’ve been accomplished in defence so far.
37 min: Insigne finds a rare pocket of space just outside the Turkish box. He opens his body and attempts a curler towards the top right. The effort is weak, straight at Cakir, who calmly collects.
35 min: Yilmaz storms down the left and curls low into the mixer. With Tufan lurking, Donnarumma improvises a low punch to clear Italy’s lines. Just for a second there, it looked like opening up for Turkey, who have been very quiet in attack.
33 min: Barella crosses from the left. Immobile rises at the far stick, ten yards out. He sends his header wide right. Had that been on target, I’m not sure Cakir was getting there, the Turkey keeper scrambling across in clear panic.
32 min: ... but now Insigne strides into the box from the left and forces Tufan to hack out for a corner. The set piece is worked back down the left wing. Jorginho curls deep. Cakir punches clear, Chiellini falling as he does so. The Italy captain wants a penalty, but the referee once again correctly says no.
31 min: Italy continue to utterly dominate without causing Turkey too many problems.
29 min: Another penalty shout as Barella cuts in from the right, enters the box, and falls upon contact with Yazici. The referee’s not interested in this, either, and rightly so, the pair coming together from the side in a 50-50 collision as they battled for the ball.
27 min: Karaman has the opportunity to send Yilmaz scampering down the right, but faffs about. A disgusted Yilmaz is flagged offside when he eventually receives a pass.
25 min: Some brief respite for Turkey, who stroke it around the back for a bit, catching their breath. Their efforts draw warm applause from their fans.
23 min: Corner take two. Bonucci wins a header, and Chiellini, hanging around on the edge of the six-yard box, tries to backflick the dropping ball into the bottom left. He gets it all wrong, and was offside anyway, but that passage of play has the crowd going again.
22 min: Italy win the first corner of the tournament out on the right. And it’s a good one, pulled back for Chiellini, who is free on the penalty spot. The old boy steers a fine header towards the top right, but Cakir fingertips over the bar spectacularly. What an effort! What a save!
Updated
21 min: Insigne claims another penalty as his shot caroms off poor Soyuncu’s trouser arrangement and up onto his forearm. That’ll hurt, but at least the referee isn’t interested.
20 min: Bonucci strides forward and tries his luck from 25 yards. No sir!
19 min: Italy continue to probe, but the Turks have packed their defence. The hosts are dominating, but still haven’t warmed Cakir’s hands.
17 min: Spinazzola crosses from the left. It hits Celik on the seat of his pants, though the crowd - and a couple of saucy Italians - claim a penalty. Nope. Italy come again, Insigne one-twoing with Berardi down the left channel and entering the area. He looks to curl across Cakir and into the top right, but doesn’t get any bend on the ball. Goal kick. The first decent half-chance of the game.
Updated
16 min: Spinazzola launches a couple of sorties down the left, then feeds Berardi, who can’t get his cross into the box. Turkey have quietened the crowd a little bit.
14 min: Jorginho prompts from deep, encouraging Barella to probe down the right. He shoots, but is closed down quickly by Soyuncu. The ball loops into the air and back down into Cakir’s arms.
12 min: A long pass down the right releases Yilmaz into space. He crosses, but there’s nobody there. Eventually Calhanoglu arrives on the scene, but only to concede a clumsy foul. The first sight of Turkey in enemy territory.
11 min: Italy are in total control here, albeit in the sterile fashion. A lot of possession, but Turkey are holding their shape and there’s no way through.
Updated
9 min: Locatelli sprays a diagonal pass towards Berardi on the right. Ambitious but not totally accurate. Cakir claims again. A nice open feel to this.
7 min: Immobile chases a Berardi pass down the inside-right channel. Cakir is out quickly to claim. An irritated Immobile shoves the covering Soyuncu in the back, causing him to fall, then gesticulate in the angry style.
6 min: Insigne spots Berardi making a move down the inside-right channel, but can’t find him with a long pass. Demiral deals with it easily enough. This is a bright start by Italy, though.
4 min: Italy are on the front foot, early doors, pressing Turkey hard. Soyuncu is forced to hack out of play in the unceremonious style. The Turkish fans then pierce the air with pantomime boos and whistles as Italy stroke it around the back.
3 min: The first effort of Euro 2020, as Florenzi chases what appears to be a lost cause down the right and pulls back from the byline. Immobile pokes a first-time effort into the side netting from a tight angle. Cakir had it covered.
2 min: Turkey are in their red shirts, Italy in white. This stadium is really rocking! One heck of a row, and the stadium’s barely a quarter full. “Just a pity we don’t get to see Italy in their famous Azzurri tonight in the Stadio Olimpico,” writes Gary Byrne. “Perhaps they’re saving it for the final at Wembley against Germany next month.”
Captains Burak Yilmaz and Giorgio Chiellini swap pennants and pleasantries. Then a hug. Then the kick-off ball is delivered by a remote-control VW. The whistle goes, and Turkey kick off Euro 2020!
Updated
Here come the teams! A sensational atmosphere at the Stadio Olimpico! Turkey and Italy take to the pitch and line up for two more anthems, both delivered in a much less overwrought style than Mr Bono. Euro 2020 will, at long last, be under way very soon! “Love how there was actually a bit of a singalong to Nessun Dorma,” writes Hugh Molloy. “I guess, when in Rome...”
Updated
Now there’s a virtual gig featuring DJ Martin Garrix, Bono and The Edge. They’re singing a song called We Are The People. Going for that Ibrox dollar, perhaps. Bono cranks the humanity up to 11, as usual, and that is pretty much that.
Happy birthday to Bono, then. pic.twitter.com/L38Ep62qiA
— Davey Jones (@DHBJones) May 10, 2021
Andrea Bocelli turns up to belt out a verse and chorus of Nessun Dorma. Operatic magnificence, conjuring bittersweet memories of Diego Maradona expertly trolling an entire nation.
“Ciao Euro! Ciao Roma!” It’s the opening ceremony ... and it’s a load of balls. Literally. One for every country, the folk holding onto them arriving to the strains of the William Tell Overture. Then some fireworks, and some flying drummers, and at least they tried.
Updated
A quick peek inside the Italy dressing room. No Azzurri this evening. They are technically the away side, after all.
Emails, then ... and what better way to start dialogue with our beloved readers than with a trifecta from Peter Oh?
“It’s really too bad that Udinese’s Kevin Lasagna didn’t make the Italy squad because the match will kick off at noon my time and Turkey Lasagna sounds delicious. Buon appetito! Afiyet olsun!”
“Yokuslu in the starting lineup should soothe the nerves of anxious Turkey fans. It’s going to be Okay.”
“An in-form 35 year-old centre forward (Yilmaz) clashing with a stingy central defensive pair of veterans with a combined age of 70 (Bonucci and Chiellini). Slather on the Icy Hot and Tiger Balm because there is going to be an almighty clash of creaky knees.”
Not that I’m trying to get in on Achilles the Oracle Cat’s predictions grift, but I’m suggesting this won’t be the last time we’ll hear from Peter this month.
Updated
In case you’re nowhere near a television, here are the barnstorming titles for the BBC’s coverage. They always manage to get the hairs on the back of the neck standing, and this year is no exception. Is this sort of thing important? Of course it is.
Turkey’s side is built around three of Lille’s title winners. Burak Yilmaz, 35, leads the charge up front; Yusuf Yazici patrols the left of midfield and Zeki Celik is stationed at right back. Caglar Soyuncu of Leicester makes the starting XI, but his Foxes teammate Cengiz Under is on the bench, alongside on-loan Liverpool defender Ozan Kabak. West Brom’s Okay Yokuslu also starts.
Jorginho, fresh from winning the Champions League with Chelsea, binds Italy’s midfield. Not so fresh: the defensive pairing of Giorgio Chiellini and Leonardo Bonucci, with a combined age of 70. But hey, the Azzurri haven’t conceded in their last eight matches, all won, with 25 goals flying in at the other end.
Tonight's teams
Turkey: Cakir, Celik, Demiral, Soyuncu, Meras, Yokuslu, Karaman, Tufan, Yazici, Calhanoglu, Burak Yilmaz.
Subs: Gunok, Under, Tokoz, Bayindir, Antalyali, Kabak, Unal, Kokcu, Kahveci, Ayhan, Muldur, Dervisoglu.
Italy: Donnarumma, Florenzi, Bonucci, Chiellini, Spinazzola, Barella, Jorginho, Locatelli, Berardi, Immobile, Insigne.
Subs: Raspadori, Bastoni, Sirigu, Meret, Di Lorenzo, Belotti, Pessina, Emerson Palmieri, Chiesa, Acerbi, Cristante, Bernardeschi.
Referee: Danny Makkelie (Holland).
Turkey have played in Rome before ... but not against Italy. They faced Spain in a two-team qualifying group for the 1954 World Cup. They lost the away leg 4-1, but won 1-0 at home, and goal difference wasn’t a factor. A play-off was necessary, and it was held on neutral ground at the Olimpico. Ten minutes before kick-off, a Fifa delegate stormed into the Spanish changing room and insisted that star man Laszlo Kubala was ineligible, on account of having previously played for Hungary and Czechoslovakia. After a trenchant debate, Kubala agreed to keep his civvies on ... but Spain could only draw 2-2, then lost a subsequent drawing of lots. Turkey went to the World Cup, while Kubala suggested Fifa hadn’t wanted to risk his facing old pals and media darlings Hungary at a tournament the Golden Team were expected to win. Fifa responded by flatly denying they’d sent a man to the changing room at all, because they simply didn’t care either way. All a bit odd, but it means historically minded Turks may look upon this as a lucky venue.
Updated
Italy coach Roberto Mancini is looking to put on a show tonight, and for the foreseeable. “After all that has happened, and now the situation is getting better, it’s about time to get back to giving some joy. This will be our goal this month. We want to entertain people even if only for 90 minutes. It would be nice for everyone. So we are here, and we will try to give our everything. The first match is always the most difficult, especially at the beginning, but we have to be mentally free, to think about what we have to do, to do our job without thinking about other stuff, to enjoy it. This must be our goal.”
The 16,000 spectators might be wasting their time. That’s because the result appears to be a done deal; Achilles the Oracle Cat has prophesied victory for Italy in tonight’s game. Achilles, one of the mousers at St Petersburg’s Hermitage Museum by day, looked into his crystal bowl this morning and started chowing down on the Italians. He’s got form, having correctly predicted the winner of the 2017 CAF Confederation Cup, then the first four matches at the following year’s World Cup. He started getting a few things wrong after that, but nobody’s perfect, and yes I did consider making that pun before thinking better of it.
Updated
Approximately 16,000 fans are expected at the game tonight, and they’re all making their way to the Olimpico with a view to making some beautiful noise. Here are some Turkish supporters not doing a particularly good job of recreating the cover of Abbey Road ...
... while Italian fans build some atmosphere at the nearby Stele Mussolini obelisk.
Tonight’s opener takes place at the Stadio Olimpico in Rome ... which according to our complete guide to all the Euro 2020 stadiums “resembles a large uncovered bowl slowly sinking into its designated patch of land between the Tiber river and Monte Mario hill”. It’s not super-safe ground for the hosts. While their all-time record in Rome reads 35 wins, 18 draws and only six losses, three of those defeats have come in their last six matches here. However, they beat Greece 2-0 here in qualifying, while their finals record in the capital at the Euros and the World Cup is eight wins and two draws ... and to be fair, they won the Euro 68 final here, 2-0 against Yugoslavia, so you can look at this a few different ways.
Updated
So how should we start the Guardian’s live, up-to-the-nanosecond coverage of Euro 2020, then? That’s right, with material first published ten days ago! Hey, there’s nothing wrong with a quick refresher course.
Preamble
Hello! Where on earth have you been? We’ve been waiting 364 days for you. But don’t worry, we’ve stalled everyone. Turns out you’ve arrived in the nick of time. This is going to be a blast.
Thing is, people get so het up about where in-play tournaments are going to end up in the pantheon. Endless arguments. Half-decent games are compared to the 1984 semi between France and Portugal by folk desperate to believe they’re living through a golden age; half-decent tournaments are compared to Euro 80 by the glass-half-empty edgelord crowd. The truth, we can exclusively reveal, is almost always somewhere in the middle.
But this time, it really, really, really doesn’t matter. There will be 51 matches at the 16th Uefa European Championship. They could all end 0-0, and it’d still be an excuse to enjoy every single minute, a reason to party hearty, a cause for wild celebration. After all the world’s been through in the last year-and-a-bit, a major international football tournament is about to begin! With fans in situ!!! Whatever happens, this is going to be the feelgood hit of the summer. Sit back and enjoy.
The tournament begins with an intriguing match between away side Italy, hosting in Rome, and designated home side Turkey, playing away. (Go with it, it’s going to be that kind of tournament.) The Turks have scored 14 goals in their last six matches, while the Azzurri, back in the big time after missing the last World Cup, haven’t been beaten since 2018, a run that stretches to 27 matches.
Before that, there’s an opening ceremony to get through. More on that anon, because we’ll have plenty of time to fill. The ceremony is scheduled to start at 7pm BST, the big game at 8pm BST. At long last, we can say it. Euro 2020: it’s on!
Updated
