We have the weapons to beat England, says Italy's Soncin
Soncin and his squad have spoken of their big dreams at this tournament and how overcoming adversity has brought them closer together, and they are confident they can beat Sarina Wiegman's side and secure a first appearance in the final since 1997.
"We have done very well in this event. There is a lot of courage, awareness and serenity. That is what has accompanied us throughout the whole event," Soncin told reporters on Monday.
"We are convinced that we have the weapons to win the game, and we have the utmost respect for the quality of the English players and their international experience."
England survived a heart-stopping penalty shootout that saw only five of 14 spot-kicks scored as they beat Sweden 3-2 in their quarter-final, and Soncin said that it was virtually impossible to replicate the pressure of a shootout in training.
"I don't believe that there is a specific way to train the penalties in a training session because there is the emotional aspect and also the physical aspect that come into play, but especially the emotional aspect which is not the same during a training session," he explained.
"Of course we, like everybody, we try to ... also train penalties so that we're ready for everything, our objective is to reach the final."
Soncin and Italy defender Cecilia Salvai, who also attended the media conference, offered their support to England's Jess Carter, who has withdrawn from social media due to the racial abuse she has received during the tournament.
"It is a cultural campaign (against racism), a cultural battle we have to fight all together. I don't know whether taking the knee is enough to change this, but for sure there is maximum solidarity from our side, we are ready to take part in any campaign to avoid this abuse," Soncin said.
"I hope she can play this game 100 per cent because this is a semi-final, so I hope she can try to detach a bit from this episode. Of course, she's not the first one who's been victim of this abuse and we have the greatest solidarity for her," Salvai added.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Straits Times
21 minutes ago
- Straits Times
Brook and Root give England scent of famous win
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox Cricket - International Test Match Series - Fifth Test - England v India - Kia Oval, London, Britain - August 3, 2025 England's Ollie Pope and Ben Duckett bump fists before batting at the start play on day 4 Action Images via Reuters/Paul Childs LONDON - Harry Brook and Joe Root shared a superb partnership of 195 to put England on course to complete a record run chase at tea on the fourth day of the final test against India at The Oval on Sunday. The touring side, needing victory to level the series, lead by 56 runs with four sessions left, and although Brook was out just before the interval for a brilliant 111, Root remained on 98 to keep England in control with Jacob Bethell on one. Brook, who survived on 19 when Mohammed Siraj caught him in the deep before stepping back on to the boundary cushion, struck two sixes and 12 fours to reach his 10th test century off 91 balls. Root provided the perfect foil, continuing his consistent form throughout the series, as the Indian bowlers struggled to get much movement under grey skies. Once past three figures, Brook launched an all-out attack, hitting Akash Deep for two fours in an over before attempting a third with a wild swing and skying a catch to Siraj. Brook's bat flew out of his hands as he played the stroke and he had to retrieve it before returning to the pavilion to a standing ovation from the crowd. Bethell got away with a reckless pull which landed just short of a fielder and Root survived a huge shout for lbw off Siraj, getting the decision overturned on review after he was given out by the umpire. Top stories Swipe. Select. Stay informed. Singapore No plans to fully liberalise cross-border ride-hailing services between Singapore and Johor: LTA Singapore LTA, Singapore bus operators reviewing Malaysia's request to start services from JB at 4am World Trump is winning his trade war, but Americans will pay the price Singapore President Tharman meets migrant workers who saved driver of car that fell into sinkhole Singapore Singapore must stay socially progressive while conserving its cultures: President Tharman Sport A 'wake-up call': National coach Gary Tan on Singapore swimmers' performances at WCH 2025 Opinion The charm – and drawbacks – of living in a time warp in Singapore Life KPop Demon Hunters to get sequels, expanded universe to include musical, live-action remake India had the better of the morning session after England resumed on 50-1, dismissing Ben Duckett for 54 and Ollie Pope for 27 to leave the hosts wobbling on 106-3. Siraj's error, however, changed the momentum in a fluctuating game once again. The highest successful run chase at The Oval was England's 263-9 against Australia in 1902. REUTERS
CNA
an hour ago
- CNA
Brook and Root give England scent of famous win
LONDON :Harry Brook and Joe Root shared a superb partnership of 195 to put England on course to complete a record run chase at tea on the fourth day of the final test against India at The Oval on Sunday. The touring side, needing victory to level the series, lead by 56 runs with four sessions left, and although Brook was out just before the interval for a brilliant 111, Root remained on 98 to keep England in control with Jacob Bethell on one. Brook, who survived on 19 when Mohammed Siraj caught him in the deep before stepping back on to the boundary cushion, struck two sixes and 12 fours to reach his 10th test century off 91 balls. Root provided the perfect foil, continuing his consistent form throughout the series, as the Indian bowlers struggled to get much movement under grey skies. Once past three figures, Brook launched an all-out attack, hitting Akash Deep for two fours in an over before attempting a third with a wild swing and skying a catch to Siraj. Brook's bat flew out of his hands as he played the stroke and he had to retrieve it before returning to the pavilion to a standing ovation from the crowd. Bethell got away with a reckless pull which landed just short of a fielder and Root survived a huge shout for lbw off Siraj, getting the decision overturned on review after he was given out by the umpire. India had the better of the morning session after England resumed on 50-1, dismissing Ben Duckett for 54 and Ollie Pope for 27 to leave the hosts wobbling on 106-3. Siraj's error, however, changed the momentum in a fluctuating game once again.
CNA
an hour ago
- CNA
Norris holds off Piastri for Hungarian GP win
BUDAPEST :Lando Norris held off McLaren teammate Oscar Piastri to win the Hungarian Grand Prix on a one-stop strategy and slash the Australian's Formula One lead to nine points going into the August break. Norris completed 39 of the 70 laps on a single set of hard tyres while Piastri stopped twice and closed a 12-second gap to just 0.6 at the finish, with a nail-biting chase to the chequered flag and a near-collision. George Russell took a distant third, 20 seconds down the road, to complete the Hungaroring podium for Mercedes and take his fifth podium of the season. "I'm dead. I'm dead. It was tough," gasped Norris, who started in third place - with Piastri second - and then went down to fifth after being squeezed at the start. "We weren't really planning on the one-stop but after the first lap it was kind of our only option to get back into things. "I didn't think it would get us the win, I thought it would get us maybe into second." The win was Norris's fifth of the season, and third in the last four, to Piastri's six. It was also McLaren's seventh one-two in 14 races. Ferrari's Charles Leclerc was a frustrated fourth, after starting on pole position but losing out with a two-stop strategy and a five-second penalty for erratic driving as Russell challenged. Fernando Alonso finished fifth for Aston Martin, ahead of Sauber's sixth-placed Brazilian rookie Gabriel Bortoleto. Lance Stroll was seventh for Aston Martin ahead of Racing Bulls' Liam Lawson, with Red Bull's reigning champion Max Verstappen and Mercedes rookie Kimi Antonelli completing the top 10 scoring positions. Seven-times world champion Lewis Hamilton, an eight-times winner in Hungary, started in 12th place for Ferrari and finished there.
