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Scotland are out of the Euro 2008 Tournament after a last minute goal by Christian Panucci saw them off and France and Italy into the finals in Austria and Switzerland. It was a heartbreaking end to their unlucky campaign.
Luca Toni had fired Italy into a second minute lead but Alex McLeish's side battled back bravely and deservedly levelled through captain Barry Ferguson in the second half.
Despite then bombarding Italy in the closing stages it was the visitors who scored the decisive second goal after the regulation 90 minutes had ended to book their own, and France's, place in the finals in Austria and Switzerland next summer.
Italy manager Roberto Donadoni told Italian television station Rai Uno: "We knew it was going to be a physical match given the atmosphere.
"But through their character and desire, the lads were fantastic. They worked so hard, they deserve this. Qualifying for Euro 2008 is amazing. It's something positive after all that happened last week (the death of the Lazio fan)."
Italy captain Fabio Cannavaro: "This was a victory won with the heart. It was difficult to play in this stadium, with that atmosphere it was like a cauldron.
"We played really well and managed to win. We showed once again that we are a strong and compact team and when we need to win we do everything to show that we are the world champions. In Italy we play a high level of football, we've won the Champions League and the World Cup but unfortunately at this moment we are being noticed for something else (Lazio fan death)."
Written by majicka
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