PARIS -- The curse is lifted.In eight matches at either the European Championships or World Cup dating back to 1962, Germany had never beaten Italy.The ninth time broke the spell.The Germans can now stop calling the Italians their Angstgegner -- feared opponent.But Germany had to pull out its specialty party trick to do it: the penalty shoot-out.After 120 minutes of normal and extra time ended 1-1 on Saturday, Jonas Hector hit the winning penalty kick that put Germany into the Euro 2016 semifinals.Here are 5 things to know about the quarterfinal in Bordeaux.---FOOTBALL CHESS:This was a game for tactics geeks, not neutrals hoping for end-to-end action.German coach Joachim Loew paid Italy a fine compliment by changing his formation for this match, choosing to fight fire with fire by playing three defenders at the back like his Italy counterpart Antonio Conte.The German back three of Mats Hummels, Jerome Boateng and Benedikt Hoewedes left less space for the Italian attacking pair of Graziano Pelle and Eder to operate. Joshua Kimmich, on the right, and Hector, on the left, played as wing backs in Loews formation, hugging the touchlines, pushing high up the pitch and pulling Italy out wide.In front of the German back three, central midfielders Sami Khedira and Toni Kroos provided another screen for the Italians to penetrate. Their 135 caps for Germany were more than the combined total of the central midfielders and two wingbacks that Conte fielded in his 3-5-2 formation.When Khedira suffered an apparent groin strain and had to be substituted after just 16 minutes, Loew was able to call upon a player with even more experience: Manchester Uniteds Bastian Schweinsteiger, who was making his 119th appearance.More than anything, the German formation seemed to mess with Italian minds. The enterprising Italy team that comprehensively outplayed 2012 champion Spain in the previous round thought twice about going forward. Instead of prowling down the wings as they had against Spain, Italy wingbacks Mattia De Sciglio and Alessandro Florenzi were far less intrepid and spent a lot more time reinforcing the defense.---GAME OF TWO HALVESAs the teams took a breather after a goalless first 45 minutes, the boffins at statistics outfit Opta tweeted that of the 18 goals scored in the two teams previous encounters at major tournaments, 15 -- or 83 percent -- came after half-time.Sure enough.Mezut Ozils opening goal for Germany followed by Leonardo Bonuccis equalizer from the penalty spot stalemated the teams at 1-1, and that was how the score stayed to the end of extra time.Settling for a shootout against Germany was a big mistake. Since losing its first penalty-kick contest to Czechoslovakia in the 1976 European Championship final, Germany has now won six on the trot at the tournament and the World Cup.Italy joins France, Mexico, England (twice) and Argentina as victims of German efficiency from the spot.---SUPER MARIOOut-of-favor Mario Gomez only got to witness Germanys 2014 World Cup win from afar, left out of Loews squad that triumphed in Brazil.Recalled by Loew in November after impressing for Besiktas in Turkey, the 30-year-old former Bayern Munich striker is now making the most of his renaissance.Gomez was instrumental in Ozils goal, holding up the ball on the left wing and then getting it to Hector. He laid it on for the on-rushing Arsenal midfielder to smash into Gianluigi Buffons net.---BOATENG GOES BONKERS:In Germanys European Championship opening win against Ukraine, Jerome Boateng used his long legs to pull off an incredible goalmouth block that just, by centimeters, kept out a shot that would have levelled the score at 1-1. The stunning reflexes and athleticism confirmed the Bayern Munich mans status as one of footballs best defenders and made him the talk of social media.He also made a fine block against Italy, just getting a right foot in to deflect a shot from Stefano Sturaro.But, with Germany ahead and in control in the second half, he then inexplicably lost his head against Italy, needlessly giving away a penalty that put Contes team back in the game.Not lifting your arms in the box is basic A-B-C stuff for defenders. Yet that is exactly what Boateng did as the ball came into Germanys box, raising both arms.Hungarian referee Viktor Kassai immediately pointed to the spot.Twitter, of course, was merciless, quickly making Boateng the butt of jokes .----MISSING DE ROSSIDaniele De Rossi was Italys most prolific passer from midfield before this match, attempting 115 passes and completing 98 of them. Against Spain, he completed 36 passes in the 54 minutes he was on the pitch. Only defenders Andrea Barzagli and Giorgio Chiellini completed more.Against Germany, his absence because of a thigh injury was sorely felt. Without a ball distributor of his caliber, Italy looked disjointed. In the previous round, Italy bypassed the Spanish midfield entirely on numerous occasions but found that much harder to do against Germany.---John Leicester is an international sports columnist for The Associated Press. 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I think both of these guys did a good job under their specific circumstances particularly with injuries popping up. The Clippers job, if it opens, will be the job, assuming they can retain Chris Paul, that many available coaches will be all over. Atlanta? A lot will depend on what GM Danny Ferry is able to do with free agency. The club has a lot of cap space and the club needs to retain Josh Smith. This job is a bit of a leap of faith for a coach, as he will have to likely accept the job before the July 1 recruiting Period and hope like crazy for the best. 2. George Karl (Nuggets): Congratulations on winning NBA Coach of the Year. Its well-earned and well-deserved. Its great to see a man like this battle cancer and bounce back big-time. Karl is one of the most innovative and creative coaches in the past 25 years in the league. He has a nice team in Denver and when the group is healthy, the Nuggets are a legit top four team in the West for the near future. Take into account the wonderful home court advantage they have, theyre always in the discussion as a good/very good team. Karls teams are fun to watch and he gets a lot out of them. While the Nuggest got upset by the Warriors and that stings, Im sure when the coach reflects on where he has come from and where hes got that thing headed, hell see theyre in good shape and thankfully so is he. 3.dddddddddddd Ryan McDonough (Suns): The 33-year-old is the general manager of the Suns after a nice stint as Assistant GM in Boston for Danny Ainge. Hes young but hes paid his dues and been around and contributed to the success of a very good organization. Im all for new/young guys getting their shot. We need some new blood and fresh ideas instead of the constant NBA retread mentality. McDonough will have his hands full in Phoenix. The talent level is way down yet its an attractive market to lure good players to. A Great opportunity. Good for him. 4. Anthony Bennett (UNLV): Hell be the top Canadian drafted this year in the NBA Draft before Kelly Olynk. Hell likely be a top five-to-ten selection. Bennett announced that hes going to have surgery on a torn rotator cuff. Will it hurt his draft stock at all? Likely not. All the scouts Ive spoken to have their book on him and are all quite comfortable with him and his game. I dont think its a big concern. Hes going to be a good pro. 5. Andrew Wiggins: This Canadian could end up being the first overall pick in the 2014 NBA Draft if he has a good year as a freshman in the NCAA. The recruiting battle is down to four Schools: (Kentucky, North Carolina, Kansas and Florida State). Obviously, if any of you have seen this young man, hes got a chance to be a program changer type guy in college and IF, there will a lot of hype and distractions which will serve as a good test of his dedication and focus, he works his tail off at his game and body hes got a chance to be a special player at the pro level. Potential vs. productivity, its what separates the great from the good. Ive got my fingers crossed that he listens to the right voices and stays true to what being a great player is all about. The potential is there, we all know that, now the true test will start to truly happen in near future. This will be a fascinating story. ' ' '
