The next pair of Euro 2012 quarter final is known

Yesterday, on June 18, the next pair of the quarter final of Euro 2012 became known after matches of C Group. Spain-Croatia and Italy-Ireland met.

As AFP writes having come on for Chelsea star Fernando Torres in the second-half, Sevilla’s Navas hit the 88th-minute winner after Barcelona’s Xavi Hernandez chipped the Croatian defense and Andres Iniesta provided the final pass.

After a fairly ineffective first 60 minutes, Torres made way for Jesus Navas in the three-man forward line, but both sides squandered chances.

With time almost up, the decisive blow came when Xavi Hernandez floated his pass over the defence for his Barcelona team-mate Iniesta to draw Croatia’s goalkeeper Stipe Pleitkosa and put Spain in the last eight.

Meanwhile, in Poznan, Poland, Antonio Cassano and Mario Balotelli scored the goals as Italy beat 10-man Ireland 2-0 at the Municipal Stadium to reach the Euro 2012 quarter-finals.

But Italy coach Cesare Prandelli will also have been concerned by his side’s dip in physical condition in the final 20 minutes, just as it did in their previous two games.

Ireland, who showed much willing but little quality, finished the game a man down after Keith Andrews was sent off late.
Several times Ireland broke at pace and had the Italian defence back-pedalling but they spurned their own chances through either a wayward pass, poor decision-making or running down a blind alley.

Selected ahead of Balotelli, Antonio Di Natale found space in the box three times only to see his shots blocked by Irish centre-backs Richard Dunne and Sean St Ledger.

Late in the half, Cassano set his sights from distance and although Given had his body behind the ball, he spilled it and was relieved to see it bounce behind for a corner.

That proved a costly blunder, though, as Cassano ran across Andrews to get a flicked-header on Andrea Pirlo’s corner that squeezed past Given and over the line.

Italy kept the pressure on at the start of the second half as St Ledger and Dunne were called upon to block shots from Di Natale and Cassano respectively.

So, according to the last results Italy and Spain are on quarter final as well. Today, on June 19, pairs of the D group will meet. England-Ukraine and Sweden-France pairs will play today and the last participants of the quarter final will be known.