Spain Vs. Italy, Euro 2012: An Andrea Pirlo Free Kick Is Going To Pay Off. Someday

Whoopsies, Spain. Are you supposed to be letting Italy take all these free kicks? Are you unaware of the magic of Andrea Pirlo? If you keep allowing free kicks in those mystical "dangerous positions," the master is going to get the best of you. Pirlo's first was simple enough, with the roja wall jumping to let Iker Casillas easily collect the ball. The second was more threatening -- the distance was greater, but the shot curved beautifully, forcing Casillas to dive to beat the ball away.

And yes, it remains 0-0. Of course it's 0-0. Italy, at least, look as though they want to move the ball forward, but often they fail at the simplest moves. As for Spain, well, getting the ball toward Gigi Buffon's goal seems almost incidential. And then, when Cesc Fabregas finally does get forward, he gets called for offside.