Holders of the trophy, Italy got their Euro off to a good start by beating Albania 2-1 in Dortmund in Group B. Trailing after only 23 seconds of play, the Squadra Azzurra had the merit of knowing how to react.
The game actually started with a thunderclap: a bad touch from Dimarco benefited Bajrami, who opened the scoring in the middle of a stunned defense. The former Grasshopper player, born in Zurich, scored the fastest goal in the history of the Euro.
This initial shock did not, however, disturb the Italians. It only took them a quarter of an hour to turn the situation around. Bastoni first equalized with a header from an excellent cross from Pellegrini (11th), then Barella gave them the advantage thanks to a magnificent volley (16th).
Emotions then became rarer, even if goalkeeper Strakosha prevented the European champions from taking off several times, notably by deflecting onto his post after a try from Frattesi (33rd). The Albanians suffered a lot and were too timid on the offensive level. Donnarumma thus had no save worthy of the name to make before the 90th and an opportunity from Manaj.
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ats/tzing
