After a disappointing defeat to Switzerland on Saturday, Italy's defense of their continental championship came to an abrupt end, and they are now once again staring into the abyss of football.

After a disappointing defeat to Switzerland on Saturday, Italy's defense of their continental championship came to an abrupt end, and they are now once again staring into the abyss of football. After Italy, headed by Luciano Spalletti, had barely survived the group stage, they suffered a heartbreaking last-16 exit due to a startlingly one-sided match in Berlin, the site of the 2006 World Cup. The lopsided loss on Saturday was one of the lowest moments in the four-time world champions' and the current European kings' history. It was also the most recent in a startlingly high number of recent humiliations, which also included missing out on the previous two World Cups.

Italy was held at arm's length as they hobbled out of the competition after the Swiss pinned them back in the first half and then scored brilliantly seconds after the break through a strike by Ruben Vargas.

Commentators expressed their dismay, calling the decision "unacceptable" and "slow and predictable" on Italy's national television, RAI.

Regretting that Vargas' goal "took our legs out from under us" after the game, Spalletti told RAI that his players were not in the proper physical shape to compete.

In addition, he said that although the heat in Berlin's Olympiastadion did not prevent the Swiss from playing at their peak, it did have an impact on Italy.
 

Unfortunately, tempo and sharpness are what really matter, according to Spalletti.

"Right now, for too many reasons, we are unable to do anything more than this."

Those remarks came after a string of odd outbursts from Spalletti, who accepted the Italy position last summer with a great deal of credit amassed after leading Napoli to a historic Serie A title. It was not a persuasive explanation for such fragmented performances over four matches.

After less than a year in command, the Italian media is already doubting Spalletti's job because of how poorly his team performed in Germany and how perplexing his many lineup and formation changes were.

September marks the start of the World Cup 2026 qualifying campaign. Following the press conference on Saturday following the match, journalists were notified that Spalletti would meet with the Italian football association on Sunday to "take stock" before holding another press conference with reporters.

However, Spalletti declined to discuss his future specifically, instead stating obliquely that "we need to change things" and alternating between accepting responsibility and placing the blame elsewhere.

"I accept accountability for the events that transpired; the players are mine; I selected them. "I'm not satisfied with our performance today or our performance against Spain," Spalletti declared.

"All of the other coaches had twenty games in charge before the Euros, some had thirty," he continued. "I only had ten." We also lost a lot of players who I depended on due to injuries."

Although Spalletti's team was still developing going into the competition, their opening 2-1 victory over Albania gave them hope.
 

But things quickly went south after a one-goal thrashing at the hands of Spain, where goalie Gianluigi Donnarumma kept the score close. Italy had to wait until the 98th minute to equalize with Croatia to advance.

Throughout an otherwise awful tournament, Captain Donnarumma was Italy's lone bright point, and he was clearly furious at how Italy was eliminated.

"It aches, a great deal. We were disappointing today and they deserved to win, so all we can say is we're sorry to everyone," Donnarumma said.

"It's difficult to digest but that's how it went, we can't do anything about it."

His apology, though, was met with disdain as enraged spectators vented their resentment at a squad about to embark on yet another round of change and introspection.