A draw in the opening game does neither of these sides too much harm and might do both of them the power of good. This ended up being a wild and open game; it had always been a fascinating one. Both Italy and Spain could find reasons to feel cheerful, Italy for the way they performed, for their rebirth and vindication; Spain for the way they reacted. Italy took a deserved lead but, just when the doubts emerged, Spain found a way through to equalise. They could have got a winner, too.

When Spain levelled they did so their way. Then they showed they have another way in a final 15 minutes that, with Fernando Torres extremely active if not always accurate, was as frantic as it was fun. As for the Italians, this was not the manner in which they had been expected to play by many critics – and they were so much the better for it. These two sides will be difficult opponents for any team at this tournament. We knew that about Vicente del Bosque's team; perhaps we did not about Cesare Prandelli's. The depression that had apparently clung to the Azzurri was suddenly gone.

Afterwards, the Spanish made clear their unhappiness with the pitch which they felt should have been watered in order to facilitate a passing game. "It's a pity. It doesn't help football very much to have a pitch that was so dry," said Del Bosque. "I am sure that with a quicker pitch we would have seen a better game."

Cesc Fábregas was more outspoken, saying: "The pitch is a disaster. It's lamentable to play on a pitch like that. I can't complain but we deserved a lot more."

Prandelli's plan to play a three-man central defence, with Daniele De Rossi as a kind of centre-back/deep midfielder hybrid denying Spain space, was an open secret. Del Bosque certainly knew. Ten names seemed certain; the doubt hung over the 11th. Who would be Spain's striker? Torres or Alvaro Negredo? The answer was neither. With Prandelli's plans presumably in mind, Del Bosque wanted touch, technique, mobility and surprise: the 11th man was Fábregas.

Despite that, in the opening 45 minutes Spain did not always circulate the ball with their normal fluidity, the ball holding slightly on the dry surface. There were moments, though. David Silva, Fábregas and Andrés Iniesta combined but Silva's final shot, partially blocked, was ultimately easy for Gianluigi Buffon. Iniesta was becoming increasingly important but he was often going it alone. Meanwhile, Italy were comfortable in possession, menacing too. A game that had been talked up as a culture clash did not reveal so stark a contrast. Prandelli was vindicated.

Italy settled into a pattern in which they had as much of the ball as Spain, or more. Emanuele Giaccherini and Christian Maggio quickly showed that their role was certainly not purely defensive, far from it. The wing‑backs were dropped in but also pushed out, seeking the space on the touchline and were often found with diagonal, spearing passes. "We did not play five at the back," Prandelli said, "we played three." And he was right. Del Bosque agreed: "Italy didn't just sit back. They played us face to face. They were as daring and as good as our team are. And we knew that would happen: we didn't expect them to just sit back."

Antonio Cassano was peeling out from the middle into wide areas, particularly the left, evading the attentions of the Spanish defence. Involved in most of Italy's best moments, his shot went across Iker Casillas's goal not far from the far post – and not far from Mario Balotelli who was lurking. All that in barely five minutes. Just before half‑time Cassano delivered a curling cross towards the near post. Thiago Motta headed it goalwards and Casillas made another save, his most impressive.

Yet it was Balotelli who had the clearest opportunity early in the second half. Having robbed Sergio Ramos, he then slowed up and allowed the centre-back to catch him. It was the last thing that Balotelli did. Almost immediately, he was replaced by Antonio Di Natale. And almost immediately Di Natale gave Italy the lead. Andrea Pirlo's run and perfectly weighted through ball into the left-hand channel found Di Natale and he curled past Casillas.

Spain had already created chances in the second period and their's reaction was swift. It was also a reflection of what Del Bosque had looked for in starting with six midfielders and no out-and-out striker. Xavi, Iniesta and Silva combined and the Manchester City player delivered a wonderfully angled pass for Fábregas, arriving from the edge of the area, to finish clinically. This had become an enthralling, open, almost wild game. Jesús Navas and Torres came on. There were chances at both ends but no more goals. Torres's quarter-hour was the very embodiment of that.

"He came on in a moment that was ideal: the game was more open and he had the chance to play on the counterattacks. Games start balanced and then bit by bit they open up and in that situation Torres was ideal for us to try to take advantage of that," Del Bosque said. But if the sense of danger was palpable he could not deliver the killer blow. An enjoyable game did not get a dramatic end.