Italy back on track, beat Ukraine 2-0

Rome: Italy put their Euro 2008 qualifying campaign back on track by beating Ukraine 2-0 at Rome's Olympic Stadium on Saturday.

The world champions, desperate for a win after picking up one point from their opening two Group B matches, went ahead with a 71st-minute penalty from Massimo Oddo after Andriy Rusol had fouled Luca Toni.

Toni grabbed the second goal eight minutes later, bringing down a long pass by Antonio Di Natale before curling a shot past visiting keeper Oleksander Shovkovsky.

The win was Italy's first since Roberto Donadoni took over as coach after the World Cup ended in July but the Azzurri were short of the form that carried them to glory in Germany.

"We weren't great in certain situations but we never stopped trying, never stopped fighting for the ball," Donadoni said. "They (Ukraine) were dangerous but mostly with long-range shots and free kicks. In open play they never once got one-on-one in front of our keeper which was a great testament to the way we defended."

Early Stages

Ukraine, without strikers Andriy Shevchenko (flu) and Serhiy Rebrov (injury), went closest to scoring in the early stages.

Midfielder Anatoly Timoshchyuk tested Gianluigi Buffon with a long-range effort before Oleg Gusev forced a close-range save from the Juventus keeper.

Italy took 20 minutes to muster their first attempt on goal, Alessandro Del Piero blasting over the bar. After half an hour of watching their side struggle, the home fans broke into a chant of "Italia".

Italy came out aggressively after the interval, Shovkovsky saving a snap-shot by Vincenzo Iaquinta. The visitors remained dangerous as Buffon pulled off good saves from Timoshchyuk and Gusev.

However, Ukraine self-destructed when Rusol tugged at Toni's arm and the big striker tumbled over for the penalty.

"I was not sure about the penalty. I'd like to see it again," said Ukraine coach Oleg Blokhin. "Italy were not as good as when they beat us (3-0) at the World Cup but that could be because they are still working their way into form.

"I don't want to take anything away from them, though. Overall, they deserved it." Italy are now five points behind leaders Scotland, who beat France 1-0 on Saturday.