Italy bemoans bizarre blunder after Germany loss: 'We got distracted'

Moise Kean admitted his team "got distracted" after Germany's Jamal Musiala scored an easy goal into an empty net when absent-minded Italian goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma left his post during Sunday's Nations League quarter-final.

Germany saw off Italy 5-4 on aggregate following a 3-3 second-leg draw to reach the semifinals.

Joshua Kimmich, who scored the first goal for Germany, played a key role in the bizarre second.

Donnarumma left his goal after making a save to complain at the referee.

Kimmich, seeing the Italian keeper had drifted off his line, took a quickly-taken corner which was flicked into the empty net by Musiala.

"We got distracted. It can happen to concede goals like that. We'll work better on it next time," said Italy striker Kean who scored twice in the second half as Italy rallied from a 3-0 interval deficit.

Germany coach Julian Nagelsmann said the quick thinking was "world-class and unbelievably smart," and admitted "I didn't see it at all."

One person who did see it was 15-year-old ballboy Noel Urbaniak who noticed that Donnarumma wasn't paying attention and quickly threw the ball to Kimmich.

"He was very sharp, which isn't bad in a game like this, he did well," said Kimmich who autographed and presented a match ball to the teenager after the game.

"He'll get a free ticket to the next home game," promised German football federation Rudi Völler.

"I've never been a ballboy before, this is my first time, and it feels really good," Urbaniak told RTL.

Italy coach Luciano Spalletti blasted his team's lack of maturity over the goal.

"We saw that they take corners quickly and must not turn our backs," said Spalletti, who called the goal "the killer for us."

"I always stand behind my players, but at times it's difficult," Spalletti added. "At a professional level, you have to show a special type of character. That was the character we showed, but not until the second half."

The 66-year-old praised his side's second-half performance but said Italy were "too afraid" to play like that for the entire match.