Inter Milan Star On Last Minute Italy Heroics Vs Croatia At EURO 2024: ‘We Never Gave Up Hope’ | OneFootball

Inter Milan defender Alessandro Bastoni says that Italy “never gave up hope” in their EURO 2024 draw against Croatia.

The 25-year-old spoke to Italian broadcaster SportItalia, via FCInterNews, after the 1-1 draw.

Italy left it late against Croatia yesterday evening in Leipzig.

It was Lazio winger Mattia Zaccagni who found the back of the net deep in stoppage time to make the score 1-1.

That meant that Italy snatched a point, which was enough to finish second in their group.

The Azzurri knew before kickoff that a draw would be enough for them to guarantee second spot in the group.

Meanwhile, Spain were nailed on to finish top of the group after winning their first two matches.

But a Croatia victory would have put Italy in a difficult position.

That would have meant that the World Cup semifinalists would have gone ahead of the Azzurri into second in the group.

Then, Italy would have been waiting to see whether they would have qualified for the round of sixteen as one of the four best third-place finishers from the group stage.

Alessandro Bastoni: Italy “Never Gave Up Hope” In EURO 2024 Draw Vs Croatia

Italy needed to keep pushing after Croatia had gone ahead in the second half of yesterday’s match.

And despite the Azzurri having most of the possession after going behind, they looked laboured at times. There was a struggle to create decisive chances that would erase Croatia’s lead.

But Zaccagni’s last-gasp equalizer was all the more cathartic for that reason.

Inter and Italy defender Bastoni remarked after the match that “We were organized.”

“We never gave up hope,” the 25-year-old continued.

“We did well to claw back an equalizer,” Bastoni said.

As far as what this Italy team is missing, Bastoni said “Something that can be created by playing together a lot.”

“A bond that you can see on the pitch.”

“However, we’ve made a lot of progress since the match against Spain,” Bastoni argued. “We’re confident for the future.”