Italy and Croatia drew, 1-1, in their Euro 2016 qualifying clash in Milan on Sunday. It was an impressive performance from the visitors, tarnished only by flare-throwing by their supporters in the second half. The game was restarted after a brief suspension, and ended all square.
Italy vs. Croatia: Final score 1-1, all square as flares rain down in Milan
Italy and Croatia drew in a match tainted by flare-throwing among the visitors’ support.
Croatia made an excellent start to the match, but their early attacking pressure left them rather exposed on the counter-attack. Italy made them pay in the 11th minute, when Simone Zaza found an onrushing Antonio Candreva on the edge of the penalty area, before the Lazio midfielder drilled the ball past Danijel Subašić and into the bottom corner of the net.
However, Croatia's reaction to going behind was excellent, and just five minutes later, they had a deserved equalizer. It was a goal Italy's veteran goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon will want to quickly forget, as he allowed a low Ivan Perišić effort from wide on the left to squirm underneath him and across the goal line.
After pulling level, the visitors continued to enjoy the lion’s share of possession, though the frantic tempo that marked the opening exchanges soon gave way to a more serene pace. A contributing factor was no doubt injuries suffered by both sides, with Italy forced to replace wing-back Manuel Pasqual, and Croatia their star midfielder Luka Modrić.
Croatia stayed on top, with Italy sitting deep and looking to play on the break. On the stroke of halftime the visitors gave Antonio Conte’s side a fright when Buffon failed to claim a deep cross, though Ivica Olić‘s header was cleared off the line by Andrea Ranocchia, and the game stayed goalless to the whistle.
Italy started the second half dangerously, with a drilled shot from Zaza forcing Subašić into a diving stop. However, before long Croatia were allowed to dictate possession again, and Italy reverted to playing like the away side. The Azzurri were unimpressive to say the least. However, despite their possession, Croatia failed to break Italy down, and Buffon was largely untested.
The game took a dramatic turn with around a quarter of an hour remaining, when Croatia fans started to throw flares and light fireworks from the stands, eventually leading referee Bjorn Kuipers to suspend proceedings. A few minutes and a scuffle with some riot police later, the game was resumed, though Croatia have certainly not heard the last of this incident.
The final few minutes were played at a high tempo, though both sides lacked a cutting edge. That was until Croatia goalscorer Perišić was sent through inside the final five minutes, only to fire his shot across the face of Buffon’s goal and wide. It would prove to be the final chance of an entertaining game, and one Croatia may well feel they should have won.
Italy: Buffon; Chiellini, Ranocchia, Darmian; Pasqual (Soriano 28’), Marchisio, De Rossi, Candreva, De Sciglio; Zaza (Pellè 63’), Immobile (El Shaarawy 52’).
Goals: Candreva (11’).
Croatia: Subašić; Pranjić, Vida, Ćorluka, Srna; Brozović (Badelj 83’), Modrić (Kovačić 28’); Perišić, Rakitić, Olić (Kramarić 69’); Mandžukić.
Goals: Perišić (15’).
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