EURO 2012 LIVE: Spain vs. Italy
KIEV, Ukraine (AP) -- It's the final day of Euro 2012, with Italy and Spain going head to head for the cup. Follow the best of the action, photos and pre-match buildup here. Want to have your say? Contact (at)phillipsian and (at)simonhaydon via Twitter. All times are Ukrainian.
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2145: And they're underway at the Olympic Stadium, Spain kicking off.
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2143: Both goalkeepers tonight - Casillas and Buffon - are captaining their teams tonight.
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2142: Buffon's a great goalkeeper, but a singer? Eyes closed, roaring out the words of the national anthem again. Can't accuse him of lacking passion, could do with some tone practice, though.
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2055: Cesc Fabregas will lead Spain's attack, with recognized strikers Fernando Torres and Alvaro Negredo starting on the bench. Italy coach Cesare Prandelli makes just one change from the semifinal win over Germany, with right back Ignazio Abate returning from injury to replace Federico Balzaretti. Mario Balotelli and Antonio Cassano will lead Italy's attack in front of Andrea Pirlo.
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2050: And here are the lineups:
Spain: Iker Casillas, Alvaro Arbeloa, Gerard Pique, Sergio Ramos, Jordi Alba, Sergio Busquets, Xabi Alonso, Xavi Hernandez, Andres Iniesta, David Silva, Cesc Fabregas.
Italy: Gianluigi Buffon, Ignazio Abate, Leonardo Bonucci, Andrea Barzagli, Giorgio Chiellini, Claudio Marchisio, Andrea Pirlo, Daniele De Rossi, Riccardo Montolivo, Antonio Cassano, Mario Balotelli.
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2040: From AP's Trevor Huggins: ''Spain hasn't beaten Italy in a competitive match that didn't end in penalties since 1920.
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2030:
PaulLogoAP (via Twitter): Spain, Italy players out to inspect the Olympic Stadium turf; Xavi stares down on that grass, is it watered enough?
GDunbarap (via Twitter): How tough is Italy's task vs Spain? Last player to score past Iker Casillas in a knockout game - Zinedine Zidane, and he retired 6 years ago.
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2015: About 90 minutes until kickoff. Both teams have left their hotel in purple UEFA coaches and are approaching the stadium. The Italians almost had to turn back. As the doors closed, one squad member came running out of his hotel!
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2010: In Rome, thousands of fans are gathering around giant screens in the Circus Maximus where temperatures soared to 100F (38C). For one fan, mindful of the state of the nation's economy and general European slump, it's payback time: ''They are paid very well, so they should give us who are watching some satisfaction,'' said Rossana Marrucci.
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1915: In an era when many sports struggle to maintain ratings, U.S. viewership of international football is increasing at a startling rate. The two Euro 2012 semifinals averaged 1.91 million viewers, a 46 percent increase from 1.31 million four years ago. With both semis starting at 2:45 p.m. EDT, Spain's penalty kicks victory over Portugal was seen by 1.95 million on Wednesday, and Italy's 2-0 upset win over Germany was viewed by 1.85 million the following day. ESPN said the semis averaged 576,000 additional viewers on computers, smart phones, tablets and Xbox. The first 31 matches averaged 1.2 million viewers on ESPN's networks, up 61 percent from 2008.
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1900:
jongreenlee (via Twitter): Today history will be made. Spain will win their first meaningful match with Italy in a century. Possesion will win.
cpes100 (via Twitter): Which Balotelli turns up today will influence the result. I go Spain 2 Italy 1 in normal time.
izzy15mercado (via Twitter): The Spanish D will be all over Balotelli making sure he's very uncomfortable on the pitch. Spain 1 Italy 0.
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1645: Five hours until kickoff at the Olympic Stadium - and the outcome is so hard to predict. Can Italy's Andrea Pirlo continue to shine even in the company of Spain's Xavi Hernandez, Andres Iniesta and Xabi Alonso? Will it be showman Mario Balotelli's night? Or another headline-grabbing night for Cesc Fabregas whose penalty got Spain into the final and also won the 2008 European Championship final? Of course it could come down to nerve-wracking penalties - with two of the world's very best goalkeepers, Iker Casillas and Gianluigi Buffon, emerging the hero.
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1630: Will Spain throw off the shackles and attack more tonight? They beat Portugal on penalties in the semifinals after a 0-0 draw. Their 2-0 victory over France in the quarterfinals included a penalty and a 1-0 win over Croatia in the final group match needed an 88th minute winner from Jesus Navas. That's just two goals from open play in 300 minutes of football. The coach has mostly opted for starting lineups without a recognized striker, hoping one of the midfielders will ghost into attacking positions and score. That's risky - especially gainst Italy which over the years has traditionally been a hard team to break down.
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1615: Among tonight's guests could be Belarus' authoritarian president Aleksander Lukashenko. EU leaders are boycotting Sunday's match over the jailing of former Ukraine premier Yulia Tymoshenko.
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1600: So far, 72 goals have been scored and here are AP's John Leicester top five contenders. Still time, though, for another entry or two tonight. Want your say? Contact us via Twitter:
DANNY WELBECK vs. Sweden: Brilliant for its cunning and exquisite timing.
ZLATAN IBRAHIMOVIC vs. France: An acrobatic kick Bruce Lee would have been proud of.
DAVID SILVA vs. Ireland: He passed it into the back of the net - past one defender, through the legs of two others, and beyond 'keeper Shay Given.
ANDREA PIRLO vs. England: The height of cool, chipping a penalty over the 'keeper - Panenka-style.
DI NATALE vs. Spain: Not the prettiest of goals, but worth a mention because of the rarity of anyone scoring past Iker Casillas.
