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#3 Federico Chiesa liberates himself
Federico Chiesa was conspicuous by his absence from Italy's opening game before making a passable cameo appearance against Switzerland. It called into question his role in the side, but with a crucial goal in the extra-time, well and truly announced his arrival on the European stage.
The Juventus winger injected some much-needed vim and vigor into the side after coming on and scored a beautiful goal. Chiesa headed down Spinazzola's cross, evading an on-rushing Laimer before striking a first-time volley from a tight angle into the back of the net.
Italy were in front and only built on that lead going forward. Chiesa had arrived.
#4 Austria can be proud of their performance
Nobody gave Austria a chance in the match. They were playing in the knockout stages of the European championship for the first time in their not-so-illustrious history. Yet the side managed to hold their mighty neighbors for 114 minutes before even pulling a goal back which ended Italy's long defensive streak.
Austria held a strong defensive shape which didn't allow the Azzurri to make their dominance of the ball count while often springing into excellent counters which left Mancini's side on tenterhooks. The ploy almost yielded dividends too, only for Arnautovic's goal to be ruled out by the smallest of margins.
Italy's quality eventually showed through but Das Team only bowed out after pulling a goal back, becoming the first side in 11 games to score against them.
#5 Italy finally concede but remain a defensive force
After four games into their European championship, Italy have finally conceded a goal. They managed to keep the opposition at bay for nearly 385 minutes of action in total (a truly commendable statistic) before being beaten on a set-piece deep into stoppage-time. It tells you how the Azzurri have built their impressive campaign on a stoic defense, which might as well lay the groundwork for their title success.
Austria were hardly the menacing outfit that anyone would fear. Meanwhile France, Belgium and Portugal will provide a tougher examination of their defensive stealth. But Italy have truly been a reckoning force at the back through a well-drilled backline and will take some stopping in the competition.
