Women’s football, Italy-Sweden 0-1 | Gazzetta.it

With his head held high. Andrea Soncin’s Italy narrowly falls to Sweden in the second match of the Nations League, coming close to a draw that would have been deserved against the third-placed teams of the last World Cup (and top of the Fifa ranking). A defeat – as an underdog, on paper – which still leaves encouraging signs for the new direction, especially in comparison with the very heavy 5-0 defeat suffered by the Swedes in Wellington. It was only July 29th, but it seems like much longer ago. In front of 2,500 spectators in Castel di Sangro – a venue contested by the Scandinavians due to the size of the stadium and logistics – the goal in the quarter of an hour by Rytting Kaneryd, Chelsea’s attacking midfielder, was decisive, doing well in exploiting the gap opened by the former Juventus player Hurtig in the area . Until the break, Italy seemed to suffer the backlash of the disadvantage, they struggled in their exits and suffered (with and without the ball) in the middle of the pitch. At the same time, however, the Italians have the merit of not disuniting. Thus giving satisfaction to the desire expressed by Soncin on the eve: to remain attached to the match, until the end.

WHAT A SHOT

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And in fact from the changing rooms, for the second half, a better Italy emerges: Soncin – who had fielded 11th of the San Gallo team, with only Bergamaschi replacing the injured Bartoli -, in the quarter of an hour of the second half, redesigns the median. Dragoni enters for Giugliano, Galli returns to a central position and changes the music. The Barcelona star does not miss a ball and the Italians spend more and more time in the opponent’s half of the field, looking for shots several times (although without too much precision) until they almost equalize in the 67th minute, when Di Guglielmo hits the post following a development kick corner. Beccari and Girelli also get up from the blue bench, immediately making an impact in looking for the goal with their headers from a cross from the usual Di Guglielmo. The 1-1 does not arrive, but a performance like this – considering the summer that has just ended – is a caress that encourages reconstruction. If this Sweden will have to sweat out an Olympic qualification that has become uncomfortable after the defeat against Spain, Italy is now looking ahead with moderate optimism. “I’m happy and proud – Soncin commented to Rai – we played on par, if not at times better than the top players in the ranking, risking very little. It is proof, for those who are skeptical about their qualities, that these girls can still do a lot. And I want to praise Sara Gama: I got her into full recovery, in an emergency, and she was ready. It’s the right attitude.”