Italy and Croatia both lose at home

It was a mixed night for the Republic of Ireland’s Euro 2012 Group C opponents as Croatia and Italy were beaten at home while Spain eased to victory over Venezuela.

Croatia, who Giovanni Trapattoni’s men face in their Euro 2012 opener in Poznan on June 10, crashed to a 3-1 home defeat to a Sweden side who Ireland will face in the qualifying stages for the 2014 World Cup finals.

A Zlatan Ibrahimovic penalty put Sweden ahead after 13 minutes and, although Slaven Bilic’s men equalised just before half-time through a Jonas Olsson own goal, Erik Hamren’s side claimed a notable victory thanks to a second-half brace from Sunderland midfielder Sebastian Larsson.