In a thrilling match, Italy beat strong title contenders Belgium 2-1 to reach the Euro 2020 semi-finals. Their victory elevates Italy as one of the top prospects in the title race. Midfielder Nicolo Barella, who scored in the 30th minute, and Lorenzo Insigne, at the precipice of half-time, scored for Italy. However, minutes before the first half ended, Romelu Lukaku dragged Belgium back into the game. It always looked like the game was going down the wire, with both sides threatening the other in a breathless second half.
Italy will now face Spain, who beat Switzerland 3-1 in a penalty shootout.
Spain's opening goal came when a Jordi Alba shot deflected off Daniel Zakaria and rifled the nets. Switzerland came back into the game around the 70th minute with a Xherdan Shaqiri goal. Switzerland then went down to 10 men when Remo Freuler was sent off with a red card in the 77th minute, but they held on to reach the penalty shootouts. It was a comedy of errors. Switzerland's Manuel Akanji, Fabian Schar and Ruben Vargas missed their chances, while Spain's Sergio Busquets and Rodri lost theirs—Mikel Oyarzabal won the decisive strike.
