Italy midfielder Marco Verratti has expressed his belief that England were the recipients of a "generous" penalty decision to help them reach Sunday's Euro 2020 final.
Raheem Sterling went down under minimal contact in extra time of the semi-final against Denmark, but England were awarded a spot kick regardless.
Harry Kane's penalty was saved by Kasper Schmeichel, but the England captain buried the rebound to clinch a 2-1 win and book a final date with the Italians.
What was said?
"Perhaps it was a bit of a generous penalty, but it is part of the picture in football. I think it was a bit of a generous penalty," Verratti said at a press conference.
"I think England did a great job. They got to the final for the first time and this says a lot.
"They conceded only one goal, so it is a very solid team, great players, very balanced, and I think they did deserve to get to the final. Now it's all down to the final, which I think will be an epic final, and history-making either way.
"England is a very physical team, and they have players who are very skilled as well. We will face a very, very tough team, they will be playing at home, they know the stadium well. But it is a dream for us to win this European Championship."
Mancini has been 'special' for Italy
Verratti went on to praise Italy boss Roberto Mancini, who has led the Azzurri on a 33-game unbeaten run leading up to Sunday's final at Wembley.
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"He's done a great job with us, everyone can see it," the PSG star said. "He's a very special manager for us, he boosted our confidence when we lost it because of the negative results of the past. I think he was the perfect man for the job.
"He restarted our enthusiasm, with his style we actually had fun. We haven't lost in 33 matches - these are important statistics, and it tells you he is doing a great job. Sometimes one might say managers are not so important, but for us he truly is an added value."
