Italy's icnonic Euro 2000 jersey | Ben Radford/Getty Images Ah the 1990s - an era where football kits were far more than just uniforms worn to distinguish between two teams. France 2-1 Italy at Euro 2000: how one of the great international tournaments had a fitting finale 02/07/2020 by Matthew Gibbs 0. EURO 2000: all you need to know. A 'golden goal' brought joy for France in Rotterdam; look back at the 2000 finals. Knowing that the game was slipping away from Les Bleus, Lemere needed to pull the proverbial rabbit out of the hat and so he turned to his bench. The Grand National came, the Grand National provided and, true to tradition, the Grand National tooketh-away. The Azzurri also called upon the clever movement of Filippo Inzaghi – the diminutive striker once described by Sir Alex Ferguson as being born in an offside position. No prizes for guessing the tactics here, as Pippo sought to spring the trap. The new Manchester United goalkeeper might have wept again after 90 minutes last night but it would have been for very different reasons. [5] France won the game just before half-time in extra-time when Robert Pires cut the ball back from the left for David Trezeguet to fire the golden goal into the roof of the net with his left foot and win the tournament for France. Finals are often nervous affairs with neither side wanting to make an early mistake. In many ways, this was a far superior French side that triumphed on home soil two years earlier. For many, this was unfairly heralded as a victory of good over evil due to Zoff’s reliance on conservative tactics – ones that had been so successful in getting the Azzurri to the final. France seemingly had no creative answer with Guardian journalist David Lacey describing Zidane, the semi-final saviour, as being “reduced to the role of a disembodied brain in a laboratory, still able to think but unable to make things happen”. Italy have won four World Cups but their only European Championship triumph came in 1968, when they hosted a four-team tournament. Change ). There was no Gianluigi Buffon in net, but Francesco Toldo – unlucky to be a contemporary of the Parma and Juventus legend but named in the team of the tournament – got the nod over AC Milan’s Christian Abbiati and his penchant for fisting the ball away. But in truth, the final didn’t come alive until the second half when, in the 53rd minute, a moment of genius blew the final wide open. Italy muscled their way into the final of Euro 2000 on penalties after a sterile semi-final in Amsterdam. Available for everyone, funded by readers. Euro 2000 kicked off in Brussels 20 years ago today. Therefore, when finals are locked in a state of mutual assured destruction, it needs moments of brilliance or enforced mistakes to break the deadlock. Stefano Fiore was a more forward-thinking option in the engine room. This feature is a part of RETEUROSPECTIVE. Italy, playing the unaccustomed role of underdogs, had plenty of early pressure with Roma’s Marco Delvecchio proving a nuisance up-front. Change ), You are commenting using your Twitter account. It was 20 years ago that a golden goal settled the final of Euro 2000 and it went against Italy. France, the reigning global champions at the time after lifting the World Cup on home soil in 1998, were pushed all the way by an Azzurri team packed full of Serie A legends and cult heroes. ( Log Out /  Italy have won four World Cups but their only European Championship triumph came in 1968, when they hosted a four-team tournament. Having already missed two spot kicks in normal time, the Dutch then missed three more in the shootout as Dino Zoff's Italians stole a place against France in Sunday's final. Today's questions remember the glory days, From Hand of God to Battle of Berne via some Zizou wizardry and a Czech chip, half a dozen tourneys to savour. Tens of thousands of French supporters crowded the Place de la Concorde yesterday to cheer the winners of the European football championship, as politicians, the media and business started assessing the feel-good factor flowing from a unique achievement. Del Piero was far more effective in an Italy shirt, scoring three times as many international goals as Totti. Fill in your details below or click an icon to log in: You are commenting using your WordPress.com account. The Azzurri roster picked by iconic goalkeeper Dino Zoff reads like a who’s who of Serie A from the period. France won the match, defeating Italy 2–1. In the 93rd minute, Fabien Barthez launched the ball long. ITALY 2000 has been providing fine Italian, modern furniture to the Greater Los Angeles County for more than 30 years. E uro 2000 is, for many people, the greatest international tournament there has ever been. The UEFA Euro 2000 finals tournament took place in Belgium and the Netherlands between 10 June and 2 July 2000. The incredible comebacks, the breathtaking goals, the scintillating football and all the drama and tension you come to expect from a European Championship were on show in Belgium and the Netherlands in the summer of 2000. Italian euro coins have a design unique to each denomination, though there is a common theme of famous Italian works of art from one of Italy's renowned artists. The ages listed are the players' ages on the tournament's opening day (10 June 2000). Change ), You are commenting using your Facebook account. ( Log Out /  Three key Portugal players have been hit with swingeing suspensions for their conduct in Wednesday's semi-final with France, sanctions which may seriously hinder their country's prospects of qualifying for the 2002 World Cup. France were rattled and there for the taking. Jens Larsen (Denmark) Notify me of new posts via email. Post by @ITBOTN_NZ. Midfield saw Juventus captain Antonio Conte selected alongside versatile former Old Lady club teammate Angel Di Livio. Never in living memory has the beautiful game caused Italy such anguish. Euro 2000 squad 10-Jun-00 / 02-Jul-00 Euro 2000 Belgium - Czech Rep. - Denmark - England - France - Germany - Italy - Norway - Nth lands - Portugal - Romania - Slovenia - Spain - Sweden - Turkey - Yugoslavia Henry provided the French threat, unleashing a couple of trademark snapshots before being on the receiving end of several reducers from the Italian midfield, the chief culprit among them being Luigi Di Biagio. An unnatural quiet fell across the country yesterday as disbelief turned to despair. Notify me of new comments via email. The fear of losing can far outweigh the desire to win. With the game inching agonisingly to its conclusion, Italy were still standing resolute while France were resorting to lumping the ball up-pitch. Skippered by Paolo Maldini, future 2006 World Cup-winning captain Fabio Cannavaro and Alessandro Nesta were both at the heart of Zoff’s back three. Press Esc to cancel. Aime Jacquet had managed to succeed without a world-class striker in his squad, relying on Stephane Guivarc’h to lead the line. Fourth official: Sure, that victorious Les Bleus vintage had their own icons like Zinedine Zidane, Patrick Vieira, Lilian Thuram, Thierry Henry, Marcel Desailly and current national boss Didier Deschamps, but it’s often forgotten half of the French squad had played or were playing in the Italian league at the time.