Italy 2-1 Albania: European champions survive early scare as goals from Alessandro Bastoni and Nicolo Barella kickstart their 2024 campaign Italy survived an early scare to get their Euro 2024 campaign off to a solid start Albania took an early lead but Italy came back with two goals to seal victory LISTEN to It’s All Kicking Off! ‘I wouldn’t touch Nagelsmann with a barge pole!’ By Riath Al-samarrai Published: 16:58 EDT, 15 June 2024 | Updated: 17:31 EDT, 15 June 2024 e-mail 20 shares View comments A dire beginning and a fast start. Somehow Italy managed to pull off both in opening their defence of the European crown with a victory despite falling so spectacularly over their own feet inside 23 seconds. That was the time it took for Federico Dimarco to make calamitous hash of a throw-in and for Nedim Bajrami, of Sassuolo in Italy’s Serie B, to score the quickest goal in the history of this tournament.
For the most fleeting of periods, what a magnificent thing that was. Magnificent for the vast crowds of Albanians who colonised a city and then a stadium and magnificent for Bajrami, who became only the second man from his nation to score at one of these major gatherings. Magnificent for those who enjoy seeing a giant rattled, too.
But what came next might be termed the English syndrome. Just as Gareth Southgate ’s side made the mistake of following an early goal by attempting to wait out Italian pressure in the final three years ago, so did the team led by the former.
