Italy coach Cesare Prandelli has heaped praise on his side for dealing with Ireland’s early pressure before running out 2-0 winners to seal their place in the Euro 2012 quarterfinals.
Goals from Antonio Cassano and Mario Balotelli clinched the win for the Italians, who Prandelli said weathered the Irish storm early on, before getting the goals they deserved on 35 and 90 minutes, both from set-pieces.
“We struggled in the first 20 minutes because they decided to try and press us and we couldn’t actually squeeze the play in midfield. There was also tension in our play,” Prandelli explained to reporters.
“Perhaps we weren’t expecting them to press so much but once we got organised, we played some very good football. I’m very happy with our performance – our four-man defence dealt with their long balls very well.”
Prandelli continued on in praise of his side’s ability to play football against a tricky opponent who tried to play high balls. He said he didn’t want to play a game of “ping pong”.
“These players have a lot of quality, as long as they show intensity first and foremost,” he said.
“I wanted a team that could improve and a side that could play football. You have to be a good footballing side to do well here.”
Italy will face either France, England or Ukraine in the next round.