Italy 0-3 Argentina: Messi's side lift the CONMEBOL-UEFA Cup of Champions trophy

Inter striker Lautaro Martinez scored one and assisted another for Juventus target Angel Di Maria, with Paulo Dybala’s final strike, as Argentina comfortably beat Italy 3-0 for the Finalissima at Wembley Stadium.

Match Report

This was the third edition of the showcase between reigning European and South American Champions, won by France in 1985 and Argentina in 1993. The Azzurri were missing numerous players, including Lorenzo Insigne, Ciro Immobile, Federico Chiesa, Domenico Berardi, Marco Verratti, Rafael Toloi and Nicolò Zanetti, while it was Giorgio Chiellini’s 117th and final appearance for Italy, back at Wembley Stadium under a year after lifting the EURO 2020 trophy.

Of the 90,000 fans in the stadium, a vast majority were supporting the Seleccion, who are unbeaten in 32 games – three full calendar years.

Giacomo Raspadori’s curler was smothered, while Cristian Romero crucially intercepted a Federico Bernardeschi roll across the six-yard box for Andrea Belotti and Il Gallo’s header was plucked out from under the bar.

However, it was Argentina who took the lead when Bernardeschi was perhaps fouled in the build-up, then Lionel Messi turned Giovanni Di Lorenzo to roll across the face of goal for a Lautaro Martinez tap-in.

Nicolò Barella forced a fingertip save from Emiliano Martinez, but Argentina doubled their lead before the break. Lautaro Martinez gathered from his own goalkeeper, turned Leonardo Bonucci to surge forward and sent Angel Di Maria clear to dink over the on-rushing Gianluigi Donnarumma.

Roberto Mancini made three changes at half-time, ending Chiellini’s Italy career during the break. Bonucci almost caught Donnarumma out with a sloppy back-pass that the goalkeeper had to scramble off the line, while Manuel Locatelli’s deflected effort tested Emiliano Martinez.

Donnarumma made a desperate fingertip save to push a slightly deflected Di Maria left-foot curler out of the far top corner. He also had his gloves stung by an absolutely ferocious Di Maria volley from the edge of the box on a corner.

Leonardo Spinazzola made his Italy comeback after that Achilles tendon tear during EURO 2020, but Giovani Lo Celso hit the side-netting on Messi’s assist after an Emerson error.

Messi tested his PSG teammate Donnarumma again after Jorginho was caught napping, then with a curler from the edge of the area.

Juventus forward Dybala came off the bench in stoppages and scored with the last kick of the game from Messi’s assist, a precise angled drive in off the inside of the far post.

Line-ups

Italy XI: Bonucci, Chiellini, Jorginho, Emerson, Di Lorenzo, Belotti, Bernardeschi, Pessina, Barella, Donnarumma, G. Raspadori

Subs: Acerbi, A. Cragno, Spinazzola, Florenzi, Cristante, Politano, Lazzari, Meret, Locatelli, Pellegrini, Scamacca, Bastoni

Argentina XI: Messi, Di Maria, Otamendi, E. Martinez, Tagliafico, De Paul, G. Rodriguez, Lo Celso, Lautaro, G. Montiel, Romero

Subs: Gomez, F. Armani, G. Rulli, Pezzella, Acuna, Dybala, E. Palacios, N. Gonzalez, Foyth, Mac Allister, Martinez, J. Álvarez