National Stadium
Spectators: 10300 (Terracing: 7725,
Seating: 2369, VIP seats: 206) U21 Portugal's Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang started the match with a crisp pass. The crowd had been anticipating this game for weeks and the excitement in the stadium was easily visible. In the 5th minute, Fausto Munno left the goalkeeper for dead before tapping the ball into the right side of the net. The U21 Italy fans were clearly happy with the effort and the scoreboard reflected the new score: 0-1. 11 minutes into the match, U21 Italy's Ettore Guaita sent off a blazing shot straight on target, a shot that Filipe Andrade narrowly saved just below the crossbar. Filipe Andrade showed his good apprehension of the play when he made a fantastic save on a shot from Andrea Bucciarelli, who was totally free with the ball in the 11th minute. After some fancy dribbling in the 13th minute, Ettore Guaita managed to get in a good position for a shot. U21 Italy's supporters rose to their feet, but Ettore Guaita was a bit off balance and shot the ball just wide of the left post. Filipe Andrade breathed a sigh of relief and went to take the goal kick. In the 14th minute, Adriano Di Tullio hit a crossing free kick to the open man running down the field. The long shot by Nuno Paiva in the 15th minute really tested Michel Galfrè's skills. The ball was on its way into the goal to the left of him when he managed to stretch himself and save the shot and avoid a goal. The audience thought a goal was coming when Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang got free with Michel Galfrè in the 22nd minute, but the goalkeeper managed to catch the ball with a huge effort. Filipe Andrade took care of the ball after a well-directed shot from Andrea Bucciarelli, even though the ball almost passed him on his left side. U21 Italy's Michel Galfrè proved his good apprehension of play when he, in the 27th minute of the match, managed to save U21 Italy from getting a goal against them. The audience was convinced that Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang's extremely hard shot when he got free in front of the goal was going in, but Michel Galfrè was relentless in the 30th minute of the game. With a little luck, U21 Italy's Michel Galfrè got control of the ball when Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang tried to sneak it across the goal line. When Fausto Munno came up free with the goalie in the 35th minute, the U21 Italy fans jumped to their feet. But the shot missed the goal by a fraction of an inch, and the fans sat back down disappointed that Fausto Munno couldn't finish the play. U21 Italy's Michel Galfrè proved his good apprehension of play when he, in the 37th minute of the match, managed to save U21 Italy from getting a goal against them. Ettore Guaita scored 0-2 in the 39th match minute with a shot that went into the goal to the right of Filipe Andrade, who was just a little too slow in reacting to the shot. 42 minutes into the game, one of U21 Italy:s players got tackled near the goal, and the referee blew for a penalty. After 47 played minutes U21 Portugal got a freekick which was hit by Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang. U21 Portugal made a substitution. Vic Al Mahmed replaced Marco Assis. After a rather tough play, U21 Portugal's Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang got a free kick in the 48th minute. The U21 Portugal players were disheartened as they walked off the pitch after the first half. U21 Italy were winning 1-2.
The players of the away team seemed most concentrated when Fausto Munno stepped up to make the kick off in the second half. Michel Galfrè made a wonderful reflex save on a shot from Albertino Melo in the 52nd minute of play. An unexpectedly hard shot by Fausto Munno in the 56th minute of play forced U21 Portugal's goalkeeper Filipe Andrade to throw himself to the left, to be able to save the ball. Through an outstanding action, after 56 minutes, Filipe Andrade successfully got his hands on the ball before it slid into the goal at the right post. In the 58th minute Fausto Munno shot on, it seemed, an open goal, but Filipe Andrade saw the ball coming and threw himself on it before it passed the goal line. Filipe Andrade made a wonderful reflex save on a shot from Fausto Munno in the 59th minute of play. 61 minutes into the match, Vic Al Mahmed had an open shot that he just couldn't miss and scored to the right of Michel Galfrè. U21 Italy's manager could be seen yelling to the referee that Vic Al Mahmed was offside, but the referee ignored the protest. 2-2. U21 Portugal's Ricardo Borges was substituted for Alexandre Neves. If Albertino Melo had kept his shot down it would have been a goal in the 69th minute. The ball went over the crossbar and out instead. U21 Italy's Vincente Soldatino was substituted for Fausto Munno. Michel Galfrè showed his good apprehension of the play when he made a fantastic save on a shot from Amor Azulay, who was totally free with the ball in the 74th minute. In the 77th minute the ball was on its way in behind U21 Italy's goalkeeper Michel Galfrè, but with the help of a sacrificing defense, he could catch the ball at the crossbar. Andrea Bucciarelli's shot when he came free in front of the goal in the 81stth minute, Filipe Andrade skillfully showed off with a save to what seemed to be an obvious goal. A hard shot 82 in the game by Andrea Bucciarelli from a close distance when the talented Filipe Andrade managed to make a qualified save. U21 Portugal's players were relieved. In the 84th match minute, U21 Italy was awarded a freekick, the ball was picked up by Claudio Gentile to maneuver through the defense. Michel Galfrè showed brilliant goalkeeper skills when he caught the ball after a hard shot from Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang in the 85th minute of the match. In the 86th minute of the match U21 Portugal got a corner. U21 Italy's goalie ran out to the linesman to protest the call, but the linesman resolutely pointed his flag at the cornerflag. Albertino Melo ran over to the corner to take the kick. The corner ended in Albertino Melo almost managing to get the ball behind the net, but U21 Italy's Michel Galfrè did a great save. In the 87th minute, Vincente Soldatino hit a crossing free kick to the open man running down the field. Vincente Soldatino struck a weak shot in the 95th minute. Filipe Andrade didn't even have to move as the ball rolled over the line well wide of the goal. A wasted opportunity for U21 Italy. Filipe Andrade made an important save on a dangerous shot by Biagio Cavallo in the 96th minute. The audience thought a goal was coming when Andrea Bucciarelli got free with Filipe Andrade in the 97th minute, but the goalkeeper managed to catch the ball with a huge effort. The referee blew his whistle, and the match came to a close. The players exchanged shirts and headed down the tunnel. The U21 Portugal fans cheered their team off the field, for while U21 Italy had put up a good fight, they were unable to come out of the game with any points to show for their effort.
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