An Italy side playing for pride managed to beat Russia, who are ranked third in the world in Beach Soccer, for the second time in a matter of days. The Azzurri’s 4-3 win was enough to secure fifth spot at the European Games in Minsk. After the first period finished with the score at 0-0, the Russians took the lead twice through Zemskov and Kryshanov, with Palmacci momentarily equalising for Italy. In the final period, the Azzurri, who were mindful of the mistakes made against Ukraine and Spain, hit back to win it through Gori’s brace and Corosiniti’s strike.

It was a special day for Emmanuele Zurlo, who made his 100th appearance for his country: “It’s a feat that makes me proud, I hope to make many more appearances because wearing this shirt is an honour that means a lot to me,” he said after the game. He then commented on Italy’s adventure at the tournament: “Unfortunately, we only lost one game in normal time and this defeat came late on. Fifth place is tough on us, we demonstrated that we can match the strongest sides. When games are played at a high level, one key moment can be enough to change the outcome of a match.”

Head Coach Emilia Del Duca also spoke after his side’s win: “Today, the lads did what we’d asked them to do – this group wanted to honour such an important tournament until the very end. We go home after finishing in fifth place, but this doesn’t reflect how good this team are, what they’ve shown on the sand in Minsk and the quality of their game in every match. We deserved more but I remain optimistic, we’ll work on the very few mistakes we made and I’m certain that we’ll go on to clinch great results.”

Out of the five games Italy played, they only lost once in normal time. This defeat in the dying seconds against Spain determined the Azzurri’s course in the competition. The only other disappointment they suffered also came in the group stage, with Ukraine emerging victorious on penalties. Del Duca’s side won their two play-off matches against Romania and Russia and also beat the Russians in Group B.

In the final, which was refereed by Gionni Matticoli from Isernia, Portugal beat Spain 8-3. A number of players who have played or still do play in Serie A took to the pitch. For Portugal, there was Leo, Be Martins, Andrade, Belchio, Madjer and Jordan, while Edu Suarez, Llorenc, Chiky and Javi Torres played for Spain.

ITALY 4-3 RUSSIA (0-0; 1-2; 3-1)

Goals: 2’second period Zemskov (R), 4’second period Palmacci (I), 9’second period Kryshanov (R); 1’third period Gori (I), 1’third period Paporotniy (R), 6’third period Corosiniti (I), 10’third period Gori (I)

EUROPEAN GAMES MINSK 2019

Tuesday 25 June
Portugal 1-3 Switzerland AET (Group A)
Spain 5-4 Russia AET (Group B)
Ukraine 8-7 Italy after pens. (Group B)
Romania 1-6 Belarus (Group A)

Wednesday 26 June
Portugal 8-2 Romania (Group A)
Italy 4-2 Russia (Group B)
Spain 4-6 Ukraine (Group B)
Belarus 8-7 Switzerland after pens. (Group A)

Thursday 27 June
Switzerland 10-0 Romania (Group A)
Russia 5-1 Ukraine (Group B)
Italy 5-6 Spain (Group B)
Belarus 3-7 Portugal (Group A)

Tables
Group A: Portugal 6, Switzerland 5, Belarus 4, Romania 0
Group B: Spain 5, Ukraine 4, Italy 3, Russia 3

Friday 28 June
5th place play-off
Italy 10-3 Romania
Belarus 7-8 Russia after pens.

Semi-finals
Spain 5-3 Switzerland
Portugal 3-2 Ukraine AET

Saturday 29 June
7th place play-off
Romania 2-5 Belarus

5th place play-off
Italy 4-3 Russia

Bronze medal match
Switzerland 5-4 Ukraine

Gold medal match
Spain 3-8 Portugal