The loneliness of the penalty shoot-out keeper

THIS is no way for the magical journey to end. In the cruellest of circumstances, a World Cup over without even losing a match.

It’s Genoa’s flipside, a trauma so deep it can sprain a side. Like England against West Germany in 1990 and Holland against Brazil in 1998, the better team has to go home because of that most unjust means of deciding a football match.