Goals: England—Sturridge 37'; Italy—Marchisio 35' Balotelli 50'
Recap: The latest chapter in the historic rivalry between England and Italy was written in blue, with the Azzurri capturing a narrow 2-1 victory in Manaus.
The enthralling, back-and-forth affair was opened in the 35th minute after Claudio Marchisio finished a crashing shot from outside the box. England, however, answered right back just two minutes later. An inch-perfect pass from Raheem Sterling allowed Wayne Rooney to deliver the service to striker Daniel Sturridge. The Liverpool man left little doubts with his finish.
But it wouldn't be enough. A thundering header from Mario Balotelli in the second half was enough for Italy to capture the all-important win.
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Key Moment: This was Daniel Sturridge's first-ever World Cup match. The young starlet is only 19-years-old. He already has as many World Cup goals as Wayne Rooney. In the 62nd minute, Rooney had the opportunity to end his impotence on world football's biggest stage, but instead sent his attempt from the center of the box just wide of the post. It would've been enough to level the match. Unfortunately, the 28-year-old is still in search of his first-ever World Cup achievement.
Man of the Match: One could easily point to the Italian side for this award. After all, they were the ones who captured the victory. Raheem Sterling, however, proved to be a menacing presence in his World Cup debut. The 19-year-old completed 91 percent of his passes, and at times with his hypnotic pace, made dribbling past the Italian defense look like a breeze.
Lesson Learned: Even in defeat, England proved it has the quality to advance to the Round of 16. With Uruguay and Costa Rica remaining on the fixtures list, the opportunity to do so will be there. Italy, however, will have no such issues. The Azzurri entered this tournament as the favorites to advance. There was no indication on Saturday that that won't be the case.
Up Next: England travel to Sao Paulo on June 19 to face Uruguay and stave off potential elimination, while Italy visit Recife on June 20 to battle Costa Rica for group dominance.
Note: Credit all statistics to officially licensed data from Opta Sports (via WhoScored).
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