Euro 2012 Day 3 Wrap: Spanish Forwards, Balotelli's Blunder, Bilic's Bold Beanie

At Euro 2012, it seems boldness counts in both football and fashion.

After Friday's opening excitement and the deathly dealings of Group B on Saturday, Day 3 of Euro 2012 featured eye-catching developments both on the pitch and along the touchlines.

Defending champions Spain drew 1-1 with Italy in a marquee matchup of world powers. The big story, however, involved what Vicente del Bosque did with the Spanish Armada in his starting lineup.

Elsewhere, Slaven Bilic's Croatia stormed to the top of Group C with a 3-1 victory over the Republic of Ireland. As of press time, however, there was no word whether two-goal hero Mario Mandzukic was inspired by his manager's daring blue beanie.

As ever, all the details from an exciting day of football are inside.

Team Selections

Spain and Italy both raised eyebrows with their starting lineups Sunday.

Vicente del Bosque's Spain lined up in a 4-3-3, though none of the front three were recognized strikers.

Cesc Fabregas played the false No. 9 role, with fellow midfielders David Silva, Xavi, Andres Iniesta, Xabi Alonso and Sergio Busquets accompanying him in the lineup. Strikers Fernando Torres and Fernando Llorente started on the bench.

Italy manager Cesare Prandelli countered by placing Daniele De Rossi, normally a midfielder, in the middle of the defense. Andrea Pirlo anchored a five-man midfield.

LOL-otelli, Balotelli

Italian striker Mario Balotelli prompted millions around the planet to utter the same phrase during the second half of the Azzurri's 1-1 draw with Spain.

"What the heck was he thinking?"

After robbing Sergio Ramos of the ball in the 52nd minute, Balotelli bore down on Spain's goal with acres of free space between him and Spanish keeper Iker Casillas.

A goal—or at least a shot—seemed certain, but Balotelli instead dribbled slowly, allowing himself to be overtaken by Ramos without so much as a threatening glance at Spain's goal. (Click here for the video.)

Balotelli was subbed off four minutes later, replaced by Antonio Di Natale—who scored with virtually his first touch of the game in the 60th.

The missed opportunity capped an eventful day for Balotelli, who also punched the pitch in anger after being whistled for a first-half foul in Spain's box.

Who Needs Strikers Anyway?

Even without a recognized striker in the lineup, Spain managed to equalize just four minutes after Italy's opener.

In the 64th minute, Andres Iniesta picked out David Silva in the middle before Silva slipped a slide-rule through ball to Cesc Fabregas.

The Barcelona midfielder then slotted home past Italian keeper Gianluigi Buffon.

It served as an ideal object lesson in Spain's typically tiki-taka football, and though Vicente del Bosque's team struggled at times to create a cutting edge against Italy, the goal also raised the question of whether a striker is actually needed.

In fairness, Fernando Torres entered the match soon afterward and immediately helped create multiple chances.

He didn't finish them, mind you, but the introduction of a true striker did give Spain more potency in the attack.

In Defense of Strikers

Croatia started with two strikers and punished Ireland accordingly in Sunday's 3-1 win.

Distressingly for Ireland, all three goals came within three minutes of the beginning or end of a half.

Croatia opened the scoring in the third minute after Ireland failed to properly clear a corner. Shay Given appeared to see Mario Mandzukic's header too late and could do little as it flew into the net.

Ireland equalized through Sean St. Ledger's header in the 19th minute, but were punished for another defensive lapse two minutes before halftime. Stephen Ward's attempted clearance fell to Nikica Jelavic, who seemed to be in an offside position.

Jelavic beat Given one-on-one, and the goal stood. It turned out to be the right decision:

"

Lots of people still not getting it: Jelavic was passively offside on initial attempt. Ward kicks it to him, making offside irrelevant.

— Kevin McCauley (@kevinmccauley) June 10, 2012"

Croatia's final goal came just after halftime.

Mandzukic angled home another header, this time off the post and off the head of Given, who ended up with chalk (from the post) on his face.

Disaster? Shameful? Or Just a Pitch?

After Spain's draw with Italy, Spanish midfielders Cesc Fabregas, Andres Iniesta and Xavi complained about the state of the pitch in Gdansk in northern Poland.

Iniesta called the pitch a "disaster," and Fabregas said "it's shameful" that they were forced to play on it.

"The fact that they didn't water the pitch persecuted our dynamic and fluid play," added Xavi.

Of course, it didn't persecute Andrea Pirlo's inch-perfect final pass that led to Antonio Di Natale's opening goal.

No Luck for the Irish

Ireland had a penalty appeal denied in the 63rd minute when Los Angeles Galaxy forward Robbie Keane tumbled under the challenge of Gordon Schildenfeld inside the Croatia box.

Dutch referee Björn Kuipers waved play on, but replays showed contact. Judge for yourself in the video at left.

The defeat ended Ireland's 14-match unbeaten run, during which time Giovanni Trapattoni's men had kept 11 clean sheets.

Bilic the Bro

Croatia manager Slaven Bilic (pictured) sported a unique look Sunday, pairing a suit and tie with matching-colored beanie.

It wasn't the oddest development for Bilic, however. Not on this night.

Late in the match, he shared a kiss with a pitch invader. Hey, why not?

Group C Table

After one round of matches, Croatia and the beanie-wearing Bilic top Group C with three points.

Spain and Italy have one point each, and Ireland prop up the table with no points.

Group C resumes Thursday. Italy and Croatia play in Poznan, and Ireland will try to stay alive against Spain in Gdansk.

Quote of the Day

Sweden will play co-hosts Ukraine on Monday, and that must mean colorful Swedish striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic is in the news.

Speaking to reporters on Sunday, Ibrahimovic quipped wise about Sweden's new attack-minded approach under manager Erik Hamren. As Ibrahimovic hinted, Sweden's players aren't suffering from any delusions of grandeur.

Said Ibrahimovic (via the Washington Examiner): "This is not the traditional Swedish way of playing. But let's not exaggerate, it's not exactly a (Brazilian) style of football."

Up Next

On Monday, England and France clash in a battle of Group D heavyweights. Kickoff in Donetsk, Ukraine, is scheduled for noon Eastern.

Co-hosts Ukraine then take on Sweden at 2:45 p.m. ET in Kiev.

Follow @MikeCummings37