Italy won the World Cup for a fourth time here on Sunday, beating France in a penalty shootout after the match ended 1-1 following extra-time.
BERLIN: Italy won the World Cup for a fourth time here on Sunday, beating France in a penalty shootout after the match ended 1-1 following extra-time. Following is a round-by-round recap of Italy's progress through the tournament:
QUALIFICATION
Italy stuttered at times, such as with a 1-0 defeat away to Slovenia and draws with Norway and Scotland. They recovered to win the group with five points to spare over second-placed Norway. The influential Francesco Totti returned from a broken ankle in the pre-World Cup friendlies.
GROUP STAGE
A 2-0 win over Ghana got the ball rolling before a brutal 1-1 draw with the United States, which saw Italian defender Daniele De Rossi sent off and then banned for four matches for elbowing Brian McBride in the face. But an efficient 2-0 win over injury-hit Czech Republic saw Italy through as Group E winners thanks to goals from Marco Materazzi and substitute Filippo Inzaghi.
LAST 16
A spirited Australia team kept the Italians at bay but deep in injury-time Fabio Grosso collided with Australian defender Lucas Neill in the area and the referee awarded a disputed penalty. Totti, who had come on as a substitute in the 75th minute, kept his cool to slot the crucial spot kick past Mark Schwarzer.
QUARTER-FINAL
Gianluca Zambrotta opened the scoring and two goals from Luca Toni wrapped up a straightforward 3-0 win over surprise quarter-finalists Ukraine.
SEMI-FINAL
Host nation Germany and their dashing young team stood in the way. An absorbing match went into extra-time and coach Marcello Lippi threw on two forwards - Alessandro Del Piero and Vincenzo Iaquinta - late in the game. The pressure finally told, with Fabio Grosso scoring in the 119th minute with a curling shot and Del Piero adding a second two minutes later for a 2-0 win.
FINAL
Italy won 5-3 in a penalty shootout after the match ended 1-1 following extra-time. France opened the scoring after Florent Malouda went down with Materazzi in close attention, and Zinedine Zidane scored with an odd chipped penalty which bounced over the line off the crossbar. Materazzi's bullet header from Andrea Pirlo's corner levelled the scores in the 19th minute. Zidane was sent off for headbutting Materazzi in the chest before the shootout drama. Every one of Italy's five penalty takers scored, while David Trezeguet missed for France. Grosso converted the decisive spot kick.
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