The Italian press delighted in yesterday's 2-0 win over France and hailed the Dutch for making the world champions' passage to the quarter-finals possible by beating Romania by the same score.
"Viva L'Italia," beamed the front page of Corriere dello Sport today. "A great Azzurri night in Zurich."
"Too Beautiful!" read the front page of La Gazzetta dello Sport beside a photograph of midfielder Andrea Pirlo celebrating the penalty that set Italy on their way.
Beating France would have been no use to the world champions if the already-qualified Netherlands had lost to Romania.
But Marco van Basten's team disproved suggestions they might not put up much resistance with a dominant display that enabled Italy to book a last-eight meeting with Spain on Sunday.
"And that makes it three!" the Dutch daily De Telegraaf said in a bright orange headline after the previous wins of Italy and France. "The reserves scored a professional win over Romania."
Volkskrant newspaper added: "The orange fever continues".
"Today the Dutch ambassador to Italy should be called and given formal apologies for the air of suspicion that disturbed the eve (of the match)," wrote La Gazzetta dello Sport.
"The Netherlands won for themselves, for honesty and, as a consequence, for us."
Italy coach Roberto Donadoni was also praised after being blasted for losing 3-0 to the Dutch in the opening match and drawing 1-1 in a dour match with Romania.
"Donadoni has taken the national team among the eight best sides in Europe with pride, conviction and unity that recalled the World Cup in Germany," wrote Rome-based daily La Repubblica.
It was not the only newspaper to see echoes of Italy's triumph at Germany.
"The World Cup spirit reignites on the last bend," wrote Corriere della Sera. "France go back home, we go forward and we start to see a bit of a team too."
In France, pained analysis of the defeat filled the sports pages and airwaves and questions were immediately asked about the future of coach Raymond Domenech.
Sports daily L'Equipe's front page showed Thierry Henry, head bowed and on his knees, under the headline "Inevitable" plus several pages of analysis on "an enormous failure".
"France left the tournament by the back door," it said. "Too old, too inefficient and too unbalanced, it left an impression of disunity that grew sharper as the competition went on."
The daily France Soir was even more scathing, running the one word headline: "Resign" over a picture of Domenech.
"With a 'Gruyere' defence, a midfield with no ideas and a phantom attack, the whole Domenech system and his catastrophic coaching was shipwrecked yesterday against Italy. There's one way out for him - the door!" it said.