Germany Vs. Turkey Highlights Video Clip

Germany 1 - 1 Turkey
half-time (1 - 1)

referee :
Massimo Busacca (Switzerland)
match details :
22' [0 - 1] U. Boral
26' B. Schweinsteiger [1 - 1]
79' M. Klose [2 - 1]
86' [2 - 2] S. Sentürk
90' P. Lahm [3 - 2]

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Spain Vs. Italy Highlights Video Clip

Spain * 0 - 0 Italy
half-time (0 - 0)
penalty shoot-out (4 - 2)

referee : spectators :
Herbert Fandel (Germany) 51,428
match details :
penalty shoot-out :
D. Villa [1 - 1] F. Grosso
S. Cazorla [2 - 1] D.D. Rossi
M. Senna [3 - 2] M. Camoranesi
D. Guiza [3 - 2] A.D. Natale
C. Fabregas [4 - 2]
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Spain Vs. Italy Match Report

VIENNA, June 22 (Reuters) - Spain beat Italy 4-2 in a penalty shootout after a highly tactical Euro 2008 clash on Sunday to set them up with a semi-final against Russia.

Cesc Fabregas coolly slotted home the decisive penalty after goalkeeper Iker Casillas had saved two of Italy's spot kicks.

The match had ended goalless after extra time following 120 minutes in which both defences were too well-organised to break down despite the determine efforts of both strike forces.

It is the first time Spain have reached the semi-finals of a major tournament since they got to the final of the European championships in 1984.

They are the only one of the group winners to make it to the final four after Portugal, Croatia and Netherlands were knocked out of the tournament.

The match at the Ernst Happel stadium was an eagerly anticipated affair, but it developed into a cagey encounter with Spain frustrated by an Italy side who have rediscovered their defensive solidity after a shaky start to the tournament.

As expected Spain quickly got control of the ball and midfielders Xavi and Andres Iniesta set about probing for gaps in the Italian back four, but they got little change out of centre backs Giorgio Chiellini and Christian Panucci.

David Silva managed to break through but his shot deflected off a defender and ballooned into the hands of goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon, while Fernando Torres lashed over the bar after being put clear by David Villa.

The first time Buffon was really tested came when Villa fired in a low free kick after 25 minutes, while Silva then drove two shots past the post late on in the half.

The Italian threat was largely confined to set pieces with Daniele De Rossi and Antonio Cassano searching out Luca Toni with lofted crosses into the area but the big striker never managed to get a clean header.

Italy were missing defensive midfielder Gennaro Gattuso through suspension but the inexperienced Alberto Aquilani did a fine job in helping shackle Spain's creative players.

Spain continued to have the better of the game after the break but although they managed to get past the Italian fullbacks they were unable to threaten the goal.

Coach Luis Aragones threw Cesc Fabregas and Santi Cazorla into the mix just before the hour to try and shake things up in the midfield.

But it was Italy substitute Mauro Camoranesi who almost gave Italy the lead moments later, his fierce close-range shot brilliantly saved by Iker Casillas with his feet after a goalmouth scramble.

Midfielder Marcos Senna almost snatched it for Spain nine minutes from time when Buffon fumbled his powerful long-range drive although the keeper was able to gather the ball after it rolled on to the post.

But neither team could break the deadlock and it became the third quarter-final to go to extra time.

The lively Silva went close again with another crisp drive and Italy striker Antonio Di Natale forced a fine finger-tip save from Casillas soon after but with both sides refusing to take too many risks it took spot kicks to separate them.

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Spain Vs. Italy Match Preview

VIENNA, June 21 (Reuters) - Italy go into Sunday's Euro 2008 quarter-final against Spain knowing that their group stage form has made the world champions look like underdogs.

Spain go into the Vienna match on a roll, looking to extend their unbeaten run to 20 games after winning all three group matches - albeit with decreasing authority - and with their first team raring to go after a week's rest.

In contrast, 2006 World Cup winners Italy limped over the line having been on the brink of an early exit against Romania after their introductory 3-0 thrashing by Netherlands.

But that all counts for nothing now as, apart from a couple of Italy suspensions, the teams start again with a clean slate.

Spain certainly will not be making any assumptions after so often looking the business in the group stage only to quickly fall away in the knockout rounds.

'This team have learned a lot since the World Cup,' said midfielder Xabi Alonso in reference to their charge through the early stages in 2006 that ended abruptly with defeat by France.

'We were a young side then and now we know what these competitions are like.'

A team tagged as 'perennial under-achievers' have looked good so far. Their neat-passing midfielders have created chance after chance for strikers David Villa and Fernando Torres, who took plenty of them in a 4-1 win over Russia and a last-gasp 2-1 success against Sweden.

The reserves then stepped in to beat Greece 2-1 in their final game.

Italy, who rounded off the group stage with a 2-0 win over France, make something of a habit of starting slowly but coming to the boil when it really matters.

Like Germany, who shrugged off a group stage defeat by Croatia to beat Group A winners Portugal on Thursday, Italy will wipe from their minds that Dutch drubbing and the Romania draw, when only Gianluigi Buffon's late penalty save kept them in the tournament.

Their pedigree demands that they reach the knockout stages and, unlike the nervous Spaniards who get nose bleeds at the mere mention of the last four, once there they settle comfortably and plan for the final.

The tough route in, however, has cost them heavily with suspensions for midfielders Gennaro Gattuso and Andrea Pirlo.

Experienced pair Massimo Ambrosini and Mauro Camoranesi should replace them and though neither has the relentless destructive appetite of Gattuso nor the class of Pirlo they are both more ambitious in getting forward.

Antonio Cassano is likely to start alongside Luca Toni up front but though it is not a pairing to strike fear into the heart of a top international defence, Toni does carry an aerial threat against a relatively small Spanish back four.

Italy's defence has sorely missed injured captain Fabio Cannavaro, for his organisation as much as his talent.

On Sunday, their reshuffled, makeshift rearguard will have be 100 per cent concentrated to deal with the movement and probing runs of Spain's midfield and attack.

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Netherland Vs. Russia Match Report

Dmitri Torbinski and Andrei Arshavin scored in the second half of extra time as Russia powered into the semi-finals of Euro 2008 with a deserved victory over Holland in Basle.

Ruud van Nistelrooy had taken the match into the added period, cancelling out Roman Pavlyuchenko's 56th-minute opener with a stooping header four minutes before the end of normal time.

But Russia's energy levels proved decisive and after Torbinski had poked home a finish in the 112th minute, the lively Arshavin made Russia's qualification safe with a third four minutes later.

Russia's Dutch coach Guus Hiddink risks being public enemy number one in his homeland after pulling off his latest masterstroke to eliminate the team who were tournament favourites after emphatic wins over continental heavyweights Italy and France in the 'Group of Death'.

They now face a semi-final against either Spain or Italy in Vienna on Thursday, and become the third pool runners-up to qualify for the last four.

Prior to the match former Holland coach Hiddink had shrugged off fears of being labelled a 'traitor' back home.

Instead, he urged his players to go out and enjoy themselves in the biggest match of their lives, and they did just that.

They had their opponents rattled early on, Hiddink's tactics smothering Dutch playmakers Rafael van der Vaart and Wesley Sneijder.

Yuri Zhirkov's free-kick drew a smart save out of Edwin van der Sar and Pavlyuchenko heading wastefully over when free eight yards out.

The Dutch fans, who again dominated the majority of the stadium as they had the city centre all day, were suddenly subdued.

Holland improved slightly and midway through the first half Orlando Engelaar fired just wide and Van Nistelrooy somehow failed to get on the end of Van der Vaart's swinging free-kick.

Russia remained dangerous and centre-back Denis Kolodin almost put them ahead with his first rasping drive tipped over by Van der Sar and another - again from 35 yards - just clearing the crossbar.

Van der Sar was working overtime and pushed away Arshavin's curling shot with his fingertips before the interval.

With Arjen Robben carrying a slight groin strain Holland coach Marco van Basten sent on Robin van Persie for the second half and the Arsenal forward volleyed just off target within seconds of coming on.

Van Persie was then cautioned for use of the elbow but worse was to follow for the Dutch when Pavlyuchenko broke the deadlock.

Sergei Semak burst down the left and crossed low for the Spartak Moscow striker to sidefoot home a left-footed volley.

Holland were behind for the first time in the tournament and their title credentials were being firmly put to the test.

Van Persie was still plugging away though, driving a shot over, heading Van der Vaart's corner wide and then spooning a free-kick over after Kolodin was booked for fouling Van Nistelrooy - a caution which rules the defender out of the semi-final.

In a tense last 10 minutes substitute Torbinski should have wrapped it up for Russia but did not connect properly with Zhirkov's lay-off, who may have been better off shooting instead.

And they were made to pay when Van Nistelrooy took the game into extra time by heading home Sneijder's free-kick at the far post from close range in the 86th minute.

With seconds left in stoppage time Kolodin thought he had received his second yellow card for bringing down Sneijder but the assistant referee spared the 26-year-old by signalling the ball had earlier gone out of play.

In extra time Arshavin shot wastefully over and Pavlyuchenko struck the crossbar with a fierce effort from the angle.

Russia's superior fitness began to tell but Torbinski's close-range effort was weak with just Van der Sar to beat in the 98th minute.

The second period was a similar story with the Russians swarming all over the Dutch but they could not find the cutting edge until Torbinski tapped home Arshavin's deft far-post cross.

Arshavin then scored the crucial third by turning his marker and slipping home a deflected shot through Van der Sar's legs.

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