Italy beat England 4-2 on penalties in the last quarterfinals of Euro Cup 2012 after both the team could not score any goals in the regulation and extra time at the Olympic Stadium in Kyiv.

Both the teams started off brilliantly and did create many a chances and came agonizingly close to scoring but never could get the breakthrough. The Azurri’s dominated the game in the middle more than The Three Lions and were seen enjoying majority of the ball possession.

The teams tried hard and eventually it moved into the penalties and England's penalty curse continued and were knocked out of the tournament after they could manage only two goals as compared to Italy’s four. It is the sixth time that England has lost in penalties in major competition since 1990.

Here are some of the hits and flops of the match:

Italy:

Andrea Pirlo: No adjective is enough to describe this Italian veteran. Pirlo was the anchor and dictated the game in the midfield. He was accurate with his passing, was good with his ball distribution. The way he converted his shot at the shootout only a player of his class could take it so calmly in such an intense match.

Mario Balotelli: There were numerous incidents on the pitch which on other day would have seen Balotelli explode, but the Manchester City kept his cool in the match and was focused on winning the match for his side. He did miss some chances but then he intimidated the English attack throughout the match and did trouble John Terry and his City teammate Joleon Lescott.

Gianluigi Buffon: The Italian number one was at the job again and made a crucial save to deny Ashley Cole a penalty which saved the day for the Azurri’s. And not only for that, the Juventus custodian made some great saves in the regulation play as well to keep Italy out of trouble.

Flops:

Antonio Cassano: Cassano who came into the match after a good performance in the last game was seen trying too hard for the team but then that could help his cause much as he woeful in middle and hardly could offer any threat to the English defenders. He was also seen conceding ball possession on many occasions.

England:

John Terry: He has been the heart of English defence in this tournament and played exceptionally well to thwart off danger. He was not at his very best but still gave Italians a hard time while going front.

Joleon Lescott: The Manchester City defender was rock solid at the back and never hesitated to put his body on the line to save keep the Three Lions out of danger.

Flops:

Ashley Young: It was very difficult to actually figure what he trying to do on the pitch. He lost possession too easily and offered no threat while tackling and to top it all he hit the crossbar in the penalty shootout.

Wayne Rooney: Rooney was seen playing horribly in the match. His poor distribution and wayward passing saw many moves getting spoiled. He was visibly running low on energy and did show the commitment that we get to see from the Manchester United striker.

By Indian Sports News Network