Or perhaps not quite all expectations, as the architect of the team's triumphant run was its Italian head coach, Luca Banchi, who was named the best coach in the tournament.
Banchi spoke to Latvian Television's appropriately named "One on One" interview show September 19 about his experiences in charge of an entire nation's hopes and the satisfaction he drew from defeating sporting giants such as France, Spain, Brazil... and even his homeland, Italy.
You can watch the full English-language interview above and on the RePlay media player here.
You can also listen to an audio version of the interview on Spotify below.
