Sirigu cautious ahead of Euro decider

Italy back-up keeper Salvatore Sirigu admits that he ‘does not know’ the blueprint to beating Spain in the Euro 2012 final on Sunday.

The Azzurri were written off by many sections of the media prior to the competition, with the side showing poor form going into the group stage and the Scommessopoli scandal threatening to wreck their efforts in Poland and Ukraine.

However, they managed to qualify from Group C before convincingly overcoming England and Germany in the knockout stages to set up a clash with their Iberian cousins for the tournament decider in Kiev.

Despite his reservations, Sirigu has urged Italy to give it their best shot in the decider.

“It was a dream to play in the final, maybe people didn’t really expect us to be here but we always trusted ourselves and we are now ecstatic to be here,” Sirigu told Goal.com.

“We are going to play against the strongest team of the last few years; a team without real problems, with strong players in every area of the pitch.”

Despite the rapid improvements since their pre-tournament form, Sirigu has admitted that he is at a loss when contemplating how Italy can overcome Spain.

But the third-choice goalkeeper believes the players are Cesare Prandelli’s disposal are ‘very strong’ and has hailed the focus in the squad, adding that ‘anything could happen’.

“Sincerely, I don’t know how to defeat them, I guess we will have to go on the pitch and try our best. Anything could happen on a given day,” he said.

“What I know is that this is a very strong Italian team, mentally and in football terms. We completely deserve to be here, and we have silenced our doubters.

“We are not anxious, actually not at all. Our dressing room is as always, very calm. We are motivated of course, but we haven’t lost focus.”