Italy Under-21s fumbled a 2-1 lead in Southampton and lost 3-2 to England with the last kick of this friendly, partly due to a Pierluigi Gollini howler.
Both sides had already qualified for the European Under-21 Championships in Poland next summer and the Azzurrini had knocked England out of the last tournament. Several key players were missing, some of them promoted to the senior squad such as Danilo Cataldi, Alessio Romagnoli, Gianluigi Donnarumma and Roberto Gagliardini.
Italy Under-21s fumbled a 2-1 lead in Southampton and lost 3-2 to England with the last kick of this friendly, partly due to a Pierluigi Gollini howler.
Both sides had already qualified for the European Under-21 Championships in Poland next summer and the Azzurrini had knocked England out of the last tournament. Several key players were missing, some of them promoted to the senior squad such as Danilo Cataldi, Alessio Romagnoli, Gianluigi Donnarumma and Roberto Gagliardini.
It was a typically sluggish Italian start to a friendly match and England took the lead at St Mary’s within five minutes, as Luca Mazzitelli’s poor clearance was straight at Demarai Gray to tap in. Gray almost doubled his tally by hitting the side-netting from a tight angle.
Gigi Di Biagio’s men finally emerged from their shells and equalised with the first foray forward, a cross from Atalanta’s Andrea Conti looping up off Brendan Galloway’s ankle to surprise Angus Gunn at the far top corner. Aware of how fortunate the goal was, Conti did not celebrate.
Andrea Petagna drilled wide from the edge of the box, but Italy did turn the game around when a corner was flicked on for Federico Di Francesco to tap in at the back post.
England lost John Swift to injury and had penalty appeals, but Gray and Mattia Caldara were pulling each other’s shirts when they went down together.
Bologna’s injury crisis is set to get worse, because Di Francesco limped off with an ice-pack strapped to his hamstring.
Marco Benassi’s snapshot stung Gunn’s gloves after the restart, while Gray’s curler thumped the crossbar and Will Hughes struck the upright from close range.
England did get the equaliser thanks to a howler from Aston Villa goalkeeper Gollini, who allowed a seemingly weak Lewis Baker effort from outside the area to squirm under his hands.
Marco Benassi’s excellent first touch almost set up Federico Ricci before England hoofed it clear, while Gollini made up for his earlier error by fingertipping the ball off the foot of Duncan Watmore.
With the last kick of the game, a corner found Callum Chambers’ header, beaten off the line by Gollini, but Jack Stephens tapped in the rebound. It was the England Under-21 side’s first victory over Italy since 1997.
England 3-2 Italy
Gray 5 (E), Galloway og 13 (I), Di Francesco 28 (I), Baker 60 (E), Stephens 93 (E)
England: Gunn; Hayden, Chambers, Stephens, Galloway, Chalobah, Ward-Prowse, Baker (Abraham 76), Swift (Hughes 30), Redmond, Gray (Watmore 72)
Italy: Gollini; Conti (Ferrari 46), Biraschi, Caldara (Somma 61), Barreca; Benassi (Cristante 75), Mazzitelli (Grassi 61), Pellegrini (Capezzi 92); Ricci (Garritano 75), Petagna (Cerri 61), Di Francesco (Parigini 43)