The former AC Milan midfielder declared that the Spaniards were on another level altogether and La Nazionale still had ground to catch to reach La Roja’s level.
Spain have made history by becoming the first side to successfully defend their European Championship.
The reigning champions turned on the style in the final by producing a splendid display against the Azzurri. The Italians always seemed to have been chasing shadows, with Xavi, http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Alonso-c5254 and Iniesta patrolling the midfield with supremacy.
La Nazionale slumped to a heavy defeat at the hands of La Roja, with the score-line being 4-0 at the end of the match. This was a cruel reflection on the Italians, as they were down to 10 men in the last 30 minutes of the match, following http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Thiago-c34888 Motta’s
injury on the 61st minute. http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Giorgio-Chiellini-c14963 had pulled out of the match around the 20th minute mark following his third different thigh strain in the last six weeks.
Pirlo was the best player of the Italian team, and continued to defy his age with his levels of fitness and vision. The former Brescia midfielder was talking to La Gazzetta dello Sport and was happy with his team’s performance throughout the tournament.
The regista conceded that the Azzurri were not at the same level of play that http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Vicente-c36001 Del Bosque’s outfit play with. They pass and move to create numerous openings in the opposition defence. The midfielder talked about the final, and commented:
"Perhaps http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Spain-c3011 are the only side we are not yet able to match in terms of circulation of the ball. This was a great tournament until the final, where we were not up to standard.”
He was further asked about his own role and his consistent performances throughout the tournament. The Juventus regista went on to state that when the team loses, everyone loses and there are no individual winners.
The 33-year-old went on to state that the Italians suffered due to the lack of rest they had leading to the final and commented:
"We were very unlucky in the final: a lot of physical problems, missed chances and had 30 minutes with 10 men. Those injuries are not unusual when you play so many matches in such a short amount of time, especially at the end of a long season."
Pirlo would now be concentrating on Juventus and their upcoming campaign which has seen them qualify for the UEFA Champions League.
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