A rhapsody in Oranje

Two of the highlights of any major final tournament occurred before kick-off between Italy and the Netherlands in Berne. Firstly the sight of the universally orange-clad Dutch fans – which even Azzurri coach Roberto Donadoni admitted on Sunday always stirred him – and secondly the rendition of L'Inno di Mameli, the stirring Italian national anthem, sung with especially visible gusto by Gennaro Gattuso. Just as well the game that followed produced the first UEFA EURO 2008™ classic.

Madrid connection
Before this game all the talk was of the AC Milan connection between Donadoni and opposite number Marco van Basten. But actually the club that had the greatest impact on the match was Real Madrid CF, thanks to the poacher's finish from Ruud van Nistelrooy that broke the deadlock on 26 minutes and Wesley Sneijder's contortionist strike five minutes later that had a similarly free-limbed Van Basten almost clearing the dugout with his ecstatic leap.

Dutch threat
In a fantastic first half either team could have opened up a lead but the Netherlands provided probably the greater threat from the off. Van Nistelrooy more than once got behind an Italy defence missing the stricken Fabio Cannavaro – watching helpless from the bench – while behind the lone striker, mischief was made by Sneijder, Rafael van der Vaart and Dirk Kuyt, getting his chance after injuries to Ryan Babel and Arjen Robben. It was an attacking display reminiscent of the days when Van Basten wore the Netherlands shirt himself.

Italian hope
Aside from the coaches' former club partnership, the other most quoted fact in the run-up to this encounter was Italy's 30-year unbeaten run against the Netherlands. But less noted was that the two previous reigning world champions to play in the UEFA European Championship – Germany in 1992 and France eight years later – both lost group games to the Oranje. And to avoid that fate Italy now had to come back from two goals behind, though that is not impossible at this stadium as West Germany rather famously proved in the 1954 FIFA World Cup final.

No miracle
But even though folk hero Alessandro Del Piero was sent on 19 minutes into the second half and immediately came close twice, another Miracle of Berne always looked an outside bet. The Netherlands did not exactly shut up shop in the manner of great Italy teams past, but Sneijder and Kuyt were in more withdrawn wing roles and Van der Sar showed the sort of form that helped Manchester United FC win club football's European title. On a breakaway after Van der Sar's save from Andrea Pirlo, Giovanni van Bronckhorst headed in Kuyt's cross to settle the game at 3-0. The sight of the Oranje hordes belting out their own anthem in the closing minutes perhaps was no longer quite so pleasing to Donadoni, his team having conceded more goals in this game than the Azzurri did in their entire 2006 World Cup finals campaign.