ISERLOHN (from the correspondent) – Having only an 8 percent chance means fishing for the famous needle in the haystack, the winning lottery ticket. Having only an 8 percent chance means being called Mattia Zaccagni, the blue Archer (celebrates by shooting the arrow) and have courage and recklessness, the class and the technique, of placing the foot before the ball even arrives and sending it there as if pushing it with his hands, he was so precise. Calafiori in the Gilardino 2006 “coast-to-coast” version, monumental and proud, the discharge towards Mattia («He saw me out of the corner of his eye»), the goal that extinguishes Croatia’s dreams and rekindles the blue team. All in 9 minutes (the ones that count for statistics, even if the goal came after 7′ and 20′ of the 8′ added time), all in 35 minutes played in this European Championship (the real ones, like the odometers of a car without make-up, are 51′). A revenge for the left wingerafter the exclusions with Mancini coach. He got on the plane at last call, winning the race with Orsolini in Spalletti’s heart. Happiness is here.
Zaccagni, the phone call with Del Piero
The network that pushes Italy, the mind that immediately flies home, to his wife Chiara and little Thiago who rejoices and stammers a hinted “Ba-ba-ba” as per the video posted on social media. The heart that recognizes the heartthe embrace of the blue curve (after Vicario’s tackle) and the ideal one that starts from Rome, where Lady Zaccagni is expecting another baby. «The most important goal of my life is for them, for Chiara who will make me a father for the second time» he indulges in a sweet dedication in the belly of the Red Bull Arena. A goal that resembles that of Del Piero, again here in Germany against Germany, then it was a semi-final, in Dortmund, it won us the 2006 World Cup. Mattia was 11 years old, he also went down the street to celebrate with Italy. Now he is the one who has made an entire country explode with joy. «We spoke with Alex last night. He was very happy and very happy for me and for Italy, he told me to continue like this » he told Vivo Azzurro Tv. His is the latest goal scored by Italy in regulation time of the European Championship (97’19”). «I wanted to get as close as possible to the bench, I got to the flag and was overwhelmed by everyone. Spalletti came to me immediately, he kissed me and hugged me, a night that I will carry in my heart forever.”.
Zaccagni, the story of the goal
Seven minutes and nineteen seconds, Italy in the round of 16 without waiting for the repechage rumba. «Cala was good at taking the ball forward, then he saw me out of the corner of his eye and he gave me the perfect ball. I didn’t think twice about it». The courage and imagination to exploit the recovery granted by Makkelie to the end. Disputed by Dalic and Croatia, deemed excessive. The lack of uniformity among the referees can be discussed, the Dutch referee used the… Fifa measure (that of maximal recoveries), moving to the second half part of the recovery not given in the first half (only one minute, yet on the occasion of two corners under the curve of the Croatian fans the game was stopped due to the throwing of glasses and bottles). In the second half, then, there were the substitutions (those at the beginning of the second half do not count) divided into 5 slots, the stop to wait for the VAR control and the OFR for the penalty awarded to Croatia, the waste of time of both ( before Italy’s 1-0, after Modric’s goal from Croatia). «We are a beautiful group, the coach was good. We have to continue like this, we owe it to the fans”. There were about ten of them, on the night after Leipzig, at 4am waiting for them in front of the hotel.
