Opening their bid for a third straight major title, the Spanish rallied to earn a 1-1 tie Sunday against Italy, which entered this year’s European Championship amid another match-fixing scandal.
Antonio Di Natale put Italy in front after an excellent setup from Andrea Pirlo in the 61st minute, but Cesc Fabregas tied it for the defending champions three minutes later by finishing off a dazzling display of Spain’s trademark passing game.
“Being the favorite now is complicated, but in the end we found the character,” Fabregas said.
Spain, which followed up its Euro 2008 victory with the 2010 World Cup title, dominated the Group C match for long stretches but struggled to finish at times, while Italy relied on dangerous counterattacks.
Watch the goals & Highlights here:
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tLrG-Z17pI8[/youtube]
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sVEUDHJn3CM[/youtube]
