Spain shoot out world champions Italy from Euro

ARMADA MOVES ON: Spanish players celebrate after the penalty shootout in the quarter-final match against Italy.

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Keywords: Italy, Spain

Vienna: Spain must be hoping the shootout win over Italy that carried they into the European Championship semi-finals is more proof that title-winning teams pick up victories even when they don't play well.

In a thrilling finale to Sunday's Euro 2008 match at Ernst Happel Stadium, Iker Casillas saved penalties from Daniele De Rossi and Antonio Di Natale before Cesc Fabregas scored the winning kick to give Spain a 4-2 shootout victory over the World Cup champions.

But the finish was in stark contrast to the dull 0-0 draw that preceded it, with neither side meeting their potential.

"We deserved to win on penalty kicks," Spain coach Luis Aragones said. "We didn't play great football, but neither did Italy."

"The pace of the game was rather slow. If we'd had a little more pace on the ball, we'd have got more chances. We had three or four chances but our shooting wasn't quite there," Aragones said.

That's something Spain will have to work on if they are to compete with Russia when the teams meet in the same stadium on Thursday.

Spain, the only one of the four group winners to reach the semi-finals at Euro 2008, downed Russia 4-1 in a group match, but the Russians have improved dramatically since then and cut apart Sweden and then the Netherlands to reach the last four.

"We would be naive to think that because we already beat Russia 4-1 we will find it easy," Casillas said. "Being in a semi-final, whatever result went before does not matter. It is a new match."

After an uninspiring 90 minutes, David Silva hit a shot just wide for Spain in extra time and Di Natale had a header tipped over the bar by Casillas.

Italy brought on Alessandro Del Piero in the 108th, but their continued caution suggested this was more for the shootout than for his ability to conjure a winning goal.

In the end, Del Piero didn't even get to take a kick.

"You have to feel ready to score a penalty," Italy coach Roberto Donadoni said.

"Some of the players tell me they would rather not go first. I do not decide who takes kicks. I do not force them," he added.

With key midfielders Andrea Pirlo and Gennaro Gattuso suspended, Italy seemed mostly content to try and stifle a Spain team that had shown some of the best attacking football in the group stages.

"We're very bitter, but we still have a lot of pride," Gattuso said. "Losing on penalties happens. We won the World Cup on penalties."