• Spain 4-0 Italy, Euro 2012 final

Superior Spain cement place among greatest ever

Spanish players celebrate winning Euro 2012 © Getty Images

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Spain 4-0 Italy
Goals: Silva, Alba, Torres, Mata

Spain became the first country to win three successive major international tournaments with a comprehensive 4-0 victory over Italy in the final of Euro 2012 on Sunday.

David Silva and Jordi Alba got the crucial first half goals for Spain, who responded to some recent criticism of their striker-less formation with strikes from an attacking midfielder and rampaging left-back to cement this generation's place as one of the greatest in footballing history at the Olympic Stadium in Kiev.

Italy - who played the final 30 minutes with ten men after an injury to third substitute Thiago Motta - had their chances in the first half but looked drained of energy in the second, as defending champions Spain proded and probed the team they played out a 1-1 draw with in the group stages.

In the end that pressure told, as substitutes Fernando Torres and Juan Mata both added an extra emphasis to the scoreline in the closing stages.

Torres, of course, scored the only goal to win the final in this tournament in Austria in 2008, and his exploits in the final meant he also claimed the Golden Boot this time around as La Roja fans - still revelling in the country's maiden World Cup triumph two years ago - tasted success for a third time in four years, having previously gone 44 years since victory in a major international tournament.

Both sides made one change from their semi-final lineups - with Cesc Fabregas returning for Spain after the ineffectual experiment with a striker, Alvaro Negredo, in the semi-final against Portugal, and Ignazio Abate recovering from injury to replace Federico Balzaretti in the Italian defence.

Vicente del Bosque's decision to start Fabregas meant the defending champions would once again play without a recognised striker, a source of criticism in some quarters over the course of this tournament.

From the start, however, Spain looked to be focused on the job in hand. After Andrea Pirlo and Sergio Ramos had exchanged high-and-wide opening shots, Xavi then fired the first dangerous attempt narrowly over the bar after taking a pinpoint ball from Iniesta.

Jordi Alba's goal seemed to end Italian hopes © PA Photos

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Perhaps it was a warning, as just a few minutes later they were ahead. It was a well-worked move, Iniesta once again weighting a perfect ball in behind the defence for Fabregas, who rounded the struggling Giorgio Chiellini as he reached the byline, and then clipped a ball back into the box as Buffon rushed out of position for the diminutive Silva to steal in and nod into the unguarded net.

The Italian response was swift, but brought no reward. Pirlo sent a series of dangerous corners into the box that Casillas struggled to deal with, before Cassano cut inside Gerard Pique to lash a shot through a pile of bodies that the Real Madrid goalkeeper did well to claim.

Prior to that Italy had been forced to make their first substitute - the unfortunate Chiellini coming off through injury as Balzaretti was belatedly given his chance to take the field. The substitute made a promising impact with his rampaging runs down the left before controversial striker Mario Balotelli made his first contribution of note - firing over from 30 yards after a slick one-two with Ricardo Montolivo.

Just as the Italians appeared to be creeping back into the match, however, Spain hit them with a crucial sucker-punch. The livewire Alba moved up the left-sideline on the overlap to relieve the pressure after an Italy attack, before feeding Xavi in the centre. Declining to return to the defence Alba instead continued his run, burning past the defence with impressive speed as Xavi slipped the ball into his path, before taking a touch and slotting a left-footed shot beyond the despairing Buffon.

Ahead and in control, Spain dictated play up until half-time - although Montolivo again tested Casillas with a smart drive as Buffon was also called into action to stop Silva grabbing a second.

Italy coach Cesare Prandelli made his second substitution at half-time in a bid to change the course of the game, with Antonio Di Natale replacing Cassano. It was a move that nearly reaped immediate dividends - the Udinese forward heading over from six yards with his first touch, before firing straight at Casillas after breaking the offside trap just a few minutes later.

Prandelli's final charge proved to be a mistake, however - as Motta pulled up with a muscle strain just minutes after replacing Montolivo in the midfield. With no prospect of the combative player continuing, the Azzurri suddenly found themselves both two goals down and one man in arrears.

It appeared to be a hopeless task and, in truth, from that point Italy never created a genuine chance to claw their way back into the contest. Spain began to dominant the ball and dictate proceeding, with the fresh legs of substitutes Pedro, Torres and Mata punishing the tired Italian defenders.

Fernando Torres and Juan Mata added to the final score © PA Photos

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Shortly after coming on it was Torres who extinguished any doubt about who would win the contest - receiving the ball from the instrumental Xavi before slipping it past Buffon to the Italian's left. That drew him level with Germany's Mario Gomez in the standings for the Golden Boot - and the Chelsea forward then claimed the prestigious titles for himself, selflessly laying the ball off for club team-mate Mata to sweep home.

The assist was crucial, as it brought him level with Gomez in that tiebreaker category and - with both men having three goals and one assist to their credit - enabled him to win the individual prize by virtue of having played fewer minutes during the tournament.

But the night was not about an individual accolade, instead it was about the continued rewards for a combined excellence the likes of which has never been seen.

Italy nearly shared possession but simply had no answer for the technical proficiency and intricate movement of their opponents, who deservedly achieved a feat that no national team has ever managed before.

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