Liveticker | Switzerland - Italy

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FINAL

Olympiastadion Berlin

Italy

VargasRubén Vargas

46'

FreulerRemo Freuler

37'

S. Marciniak

Olympiastadion Berlin

Full-time: Switzerland 2-0 Italy

Switzerland have done it! Die Nati have defeated their ghosts of past knockout rounds with a superb showing against the reigning Euro champions. Goals from Freuler and Vargas gave the Swiss a hugely deserved win over Italy who never looked like they had something in store for their opposition. Much to ponder for Spalletti and co., meanwhile Switzerland celebrate a historic evening at the Olympiastadion.

Full-time

90'

+ 2

Substitution

Renato Steffen

Michel Aebischer

88'

Swiss wall holding firm

Italy's approach been a lot more direct in this final phase of the game with the number of players they have forward, however, Die Nati's back five has batted away any and all danger balls into the box so far with ease.

86'

Substitution

Davide Frattesi

Nicolo Fagioli

Perfect Duah

The Ludogorets forward has done excellently to maintain Switzerland's pressure and contribute to the team's effort to maintain the 2-0 lead. Hold-up play, tracking back to defend and composure under pressure, he's shown it all.

83'

Zuber shoots wide!

Some excellent hold-up play deeper in the Swiss defensive third opens up space for Zuber on the counter who is found by an excellent through-ball from Xhaka. The former Hoffenheim winger exchanges a one-two with the Leverkusen man before shooting wide of the Italian goal from a difficult angle.

80'

It's all Italy

All the action coming from Italy now as Switzerland look to put everything on the line to protect this 2-0 lead. If they can hold on for 10 minutes more and some change, this will be a historic result for Die Nati.

A disappointing outing

Spalletti's mood represents the mood of the Italian camp as it stands - they've looked better in the last few minutes, but they are seemingly in need of a miracle to come back.

77'

Substitution

Kwadwo Duah

Breel Embolo

77'

Substitution

Vincent Sierro

Dan Ndoye

75'

Scamacca hits the post!

Italy have finally come to life in this second half, with two shot attempts in the space of 60 seconds - the first being a near-goal from Gianluca Scamacca, who hits the post from point-blank range. A double change follows from Spalletti as they look to give themselves a lifeline in the final quarter of the game.

74'

Substitution

Andrea Cambiaso

Matteo Darmian

74'

Substitution

Lorenzo Pellegrini

Bryan Cristante

71'

Double Swiss change

Well-timed changes from the Swiss camp to bring in fresh legs - two Bundesliga players come off for Bundesliga players of past and present in Leonidas Stergiou and Steven Zuber.

71'

Substitution

Leonidas Stergiou

Fabian Rieder

71'

Substitution

Steven Zuber

Rubén Vargas

70'

Numbers speak volumes

The difference in shots attempted, both on and off target, really tells the tale of this game. Italy have struggled to create tangible threat in the Swiss penalty area. Meanwhile Yakin's side have looked a threat each time they've bombed forward.

Goal attempts

11off target

4on target

6off target

0on target

Ndoye trying the spectacular

It's a symbol of how comfortable Switzerland are with their lead that the latest Swiss shot attempt is an overhead kick from Ndoye following a cross from Rodriguez.

64'

Added Italian firepower

Spalletti has decided to sacrifice Barella in the hope of going more direct with another forward in Mateo Retegui. So far, they've looked toothless in attack.

64'

Substitution

Mateo Retegui

Nicolo Barella

59'

Switzerland looking unfazed

Italy have stepped up their press in the Swiss defensive third, however, Die Nati look absolutely unfazed and are doing well to play through the lines of pressure.

57'

Third yellow for Italy

That's the third Italian defender to go into the referee's book - this time, it's a foul by Mancini on Stuttgart's Rieder.

57'

Yellow card

Gianluca Mancini

55'

Swiss duel domination

Yakin's side have maintained their intensity and dropped off at the right moments. More tackles, more pressure and Italy are struggling to keep up.

Tackles won

52'

Scare for Schär

Italian heads haven't dropped since that Vargas rocket-shot. They are attempting to put together some good passing moves and the latest nearly produces a huge blunder from Schär as he blocks the pass and nearly puts the ball past Sommer in goal, the goalpost being the saviour.

10/10 Vargas

Goal and assist for the Augsburg winger today. He's been a menace for the Italian defence.

48'

Vargas finds top-bins!

An incredible start to the second half for Switzerland - good combinations in possession again out wide to create space on the edge of the box for Vargas, who curls the ball to perfection past Donnarumma and into the top corner. He'll remember that for the rest of his life.

46'

Rubén Vargas

GOAL!

2:0

Kick-off!

45'

+ 4

Substitution

Mattia Zaccagni

Stephan El Shaarawy

Half-time: Switzerland 1-0 Italy

Only a 1-0 lead at half-time for the Swiss, however, it could have been more. Remo Freuler's superb volley was the reward for their sustained pressure - and excellent throughout the first 45, they will be raring to go for the second. It has been a polar opposite story for Spalletti's Italy, who will need to reassess at half-time and make serious changes if they are to make a comeback here.

Half-time

45'

+ 2

Rieder denied by Super Donnarumma

The newly signed VfB Stuttgart loanee bends a superb free-kick, attempting to catch out the Italian number one at the near post, but he reacts well to deny the Swiss winger.

45'

+ 1

Italian struggles continue

Spalletti's side need half-time to come sooner rather than later. They've really struggled to gather any kind of sustained momentum. That half-time team talk will be crucial. The latest sign of their frustration is a yellow for Stephan El Shaarawy.

45'

Yellow card

Stephan El Shaarawy

1:00

The best of Ruben Vargas from 2023/24

Augsburg fans will be well familiar with the creative talents of this Swiss winger, who has helped Die Nati to their opener.

37'

Freuler strikes first!

Switzerland find their very well-deserved breakthrough and it's the Swiss number eight who rushes into the box to volley past Donnarumma. Yet another superb possession sequence from Yakin's side and this time, they are rewarded with the goal. Assisted by Augsburg's wing wizard Ruben Vargas.

37'

Remo Freuler

GOAL!

1:0

35'

Barella the first to see yellow

The Azzurri man charges down Fabian Rieder in transition and takes one for the team to prevent further Swiss threat. The first card of the day.

35'

Yellow card

Nicolo Barella

32'

Ball-playing struggles

Each time Italy have had an opportunity to play out from the back from goal-kick situations, they've failed to break out against the increasing Swiss pressure.

Incredible Donnarumma

The PSG number one has been arguably Italy's best player at the tournament and saves like this are exactly why.

28'

Ndoye finding space wide

Dan Ndoye has looked a threat on the flanks, consistently receiving the ball in dangerous positions outside Italy's penalty area. Spalletti's defence has held firm thus far, however, with their blocks.

26'

Dancing feet from Chiesa

This time it's Chiesa at the other end who is denied by Sommer in goal. The Juventus man does well to drive into the Swiss box and create space for the shot - his measured curler is parried away.

24'

Donnarumma denies Embolo!

Breel Embolo is on the receiving end of a great ball in behind the Swiss defence but Italy's number one stands tall to deny the Monaco man's curling attempt.

Hotly contested affair

Temperatures in the capital are reaching 30 degrees, which is no doubt affecting the players as they look to maintain the intensity.

21'

Smooth Swiss football

Switzerland are turning on the style now, putting together some excellent passing combinations to attack the space between Italian lines.

20'

Spaces opening up

The game has opened up a lot more in the last few minutes, with both sides on the receiving end of offensive transitions. There are no goals yet but there has been plenty of entertainment.

16'

First Italy attack

The first time Spalleti's side create some sort of threat, an overlapping run from Bryan Cristante to create a good cutback opportunity from the right. The pass is blocked away for a corner, but the Azzurri will take some confidence from that after a shaky start.

Quarterback Xhaka

Bayer Leverkusen's Granit Xhaka has been very composed in possession thus far and as expected has been pulling the strings for Die Nati from the middle of the park.

12'

Sloppy Italy

The Azzurri have looked really off on the ball so far and are struggling to maintain possession under the incessant Swiss pressure.

Barella down and hurt

An off-the-ball foul on Inter's Nicolo Barella has sent the Italian down - a big injury concern for Spalletti.

Switzerland dominant start

Switzerland have looked very comfortable in possession thus far, winning fouls in key areas in the middle third as well as further forward. Italy are yet to get a proper foothold in the game.

Early statement

It took all of 42 seconds for Switzerland to get their first corner, early pressure and offence shown from Yakin's Die Nati.

Kick-off!

Breel Embolo of Switzerland gets us underway for the round of 16!

Kick-off!

Final touches

The players are out on the pitch, completing final warm-ups - kick-off is not far.

Sensational atmosphere building up

Both sets of fans are creating a superb atmosphere with just under 30 minutes to go until kick-off.

The cheese derby?

More on the teams

Both teams have a player suspended in Calafiori and Widmer. Switzerland make only one change, with Aebischer slotting in at right-wing back for Widmer while Augsburg's Ruben Vargas starts as part of the front three. Italy boss Spalletti has rung the changes after resting some personnel against Croatia. Chiesa and Scamacca are back in the attack, while Gianluca Mancini replaces the suspended Calafiori.

Supersub Zaccagni?

The Lazio winger came off the bench to rescue a point in Italy's final group stage game against Croatia by scoring in the 98th minute. Will he repeat his heroics against Switzerland?

Italy starting XI

Donnarumma - Di Lorenzo, Mancini, Bastoni, Darmian - Cristante, Fagioli, Barella - El Shaarawy, Scamacca, Chiesa

Switzerland starting XI

Sommer - Akanji, Schär, Rodriguez - Rieder, Xhaka, Freuler, Aebischer - Ndoye, Vargas, Embolo

To each their own..

The Olympiastadion awaits

No doubt Luciano Spalletti will be keen to remind his side of the last time Italy contested an international tie at the Olympiastadion - a World Cup final against France, winning on penalties back in 2006. A historic night for the Azzurri. Now, they have a chance to do it all again.

2:33

Xhaka the Swiss heartbeat

If Murat Yakin's side are to progress beyond the Azzurri today, Granit Xhaka will be important.

Key personnel missing

Both sides are missing key personnel at the back ahead of this round of 16 tie. For the Swiss, Mainz man Silvan Widmer misses out due to two yellow cards, leading to a suspension. He was on target the last time the sides met in a 2022 World Cup qualifier. Meanwhile for the Azzurri, centre-back Riccardo Calafiori also misses out due to a suspension after picking up a yellow against Croatia in their final group stage tie.

Swiss celebration

Switzerland would gain a slight touch of revenge in the subsequent World Cup qualifiers, however. Silvan Widmer scored at the Stadio Olimpico in Rome in a 1-1 draw that would help the Swiss top the section ahead of Italy and advance to the finals. The Azzurri failed to advance past North Macedonia in a play-off.

Last Euro meeting

These teams went head to head in the group stages at Euro 2020, when Italy ran out 3-0 winners thanks to Manuel Locatelli's double and a Ciro Immobile goal.

Eyes on the prize

The winners of today's Round of 16 encounter will be heading to Düsseldorf on 6 July to face either England or Slovakia in the quarter-finals.

Italy's solid history

The Azzurri have been victorious in 29 of the 61 international meetings with Switzerland while they have failed lose against the Swiss in 31 years. Switzerland have won just eight times in the history of this fixture.

3:42

Watch: Inside the Olympiastadion

Take a look around the ground which will host the first of eight last-16 games...

How they got here: Switzerland

As for the Swiss, they finished unbeaten in Group A (W1, D2), but still in second-place behind table-topping Germany. There's plenty of Bundesliga interest in their ranks, with Granit Xhaka (Bayer Leverkusen) captaining a side that also features Rubén Vargas (Augsburg), Gregor Kobel (Borussia Dortmund), Nico Elvedi (Borussia Mönchengladbach), Silvan Widmer (Mainz), Leonidas Stergiou (VfB Stuttgart) and Cédric Zesiger (Wolfsburg).

How they got here: Italy

Italy got through to this stage by the skin of their teeth thanks to Mattia Zaccagni's injury-time goal against Croatia that knocked the heartbroken Croatians out of the tournament in the process. A win, a draw and a loss was, in the end, enough for Italy to finish second in Group B.

It's knockout time!

Welcome to our coverage of the last-16 encounter between Switzerland and Italy at Berlin's Olympiastadion on Saturday (kick-off: 6pm CEST), which kicks-off the Euro 2024 knockout stage.