Italy win Nations League third place match vs Netherlands ensuring 2nd half comeback

Italy have won the Nations League third place match against Netherlands 3-2, after seeing off a late comeback from the Dutch. Both teams were unable to win their respective semi final matches, and the Azzurri have now finished third in the competition after securing a rather comfortable win. 

They went ahead early on, with Federico Dimarco scoring the opener only six minutes into the game. Davide Frattesi doubled their lead 20 minutes into the game, punishing the opposition for not being able to contain their offensive movement.

It was a much better display from the reigning European champions this time around, after failing to turn up in the semi-final. They completely dominated the first half and had something to show for it at half time, with their goalkeeper barely being tested throughout the opening 45 minutes. 

Italy secure Nations League third place for the second consecutive season 

The second half saw Ronald Koeman make three changes, which helped the Dutch grow back into the game. They were able to pull one back courtesy of Steven Bergwijn, but their hopes would not last very long, as Federico Chiesa scored in the 72nd minute to make it 3-1. 

The Netherlands were able to make it 3-2 late in the game, after Gini Wijnaldum fired the ball into the roof of the net. However, in spite of tempers flaring up late in the game, the Oranje were not able to level things up. And as a result, they lost in spite of a determined second half performance. 

This is the second straight season that Roberto Mancini has led Italy to a third placed finish in the Nations League. The national team’s fortunes have been mixed over the last few years. They won the Euros, but missed out on the World Cup, and have salvaged a third place finish in the Nations League after losing the semifinals. 

The future of Roberto Mancini remains with the national team for now. But, the board will be looking for more consistency in their performances going forward, as their recent past has not been very promising. 

Ronald Koeman’s new spell as the Netherlands head coach has not gone off to a positive start. They have only won one out of their four games under him, losing to France, Croatia and Italy. The pressure will be on early for the former Barcelona manager, who replaced Louis Van Gaal after a 20-game unbeaten run excluding penalty shootouts.