⚽ Italy– Key Euros Stats ⚽
Euro looks: 10
Euro Titles: 2
Finest surface: Winners (1968, 2020)
Euros Record: W21 D18 L6
Objectives scored: 52
Greatest win: 3-0 (vs Turkey and vs Switzerland in Euro 2020)
Gamer to view: Federico Dimarco
World ranking: 9th Team
Group label: Gli Azzuri (the Blues)
Group Fixtures:
- 15 June: Italy vs Albania (BVB Stadion, Dortmund, 9pm local/19:00 GMT)
- 20 June: Spain vs Italy (Arena AufSchalke, Gelsenkirchen, 9pm local/19:00 GMT)
- 24 June: Croatia vs Italy (Leipzig Stadium, Leipzig, 9pm local/19:00 GMT)
How to follow our Euro 2024 protection: UEFA Euro 2024 on Al Jazeera
Italy gets to the Euros as protecting champs, however the title comes without the aura; it has actually been slowly wearing down because that extraordinary summer season night at Wembley, London, in 2021.
Less than a year after their crowning magnificence at the Euros, the Azzurri experienced the ignominy of losing out on the 2022 Qatar World Cup after a spectacular interruption time objective saw them lose their playoff semifinal to football minnows North Macedonia.
Their credentials project for Euro 2024 was likewise filled.
After their very first 2 qualifiers– a loss to England and a win over Malta– Italy were rocked by the resignation of supervisor Roberto Mancini after more than 5 years in the task.
He was changed by Luciano Spalletti, whose very first video game in charge was a 1-1 draw, which likewise occurred to be versus their 2022 bane, North Macedonia. With just one triumph in their very first 3 video games, Euro 2024 certification all of a sudden looked precarious.
A run of 3 wins in 4 matches saw Italy enter into the last group video game versus Ukraine, understanding a loss would see them get in the playoffs. A tense goalless draw protected direct passage to the Euros owing to their exceptional head-to-head record.
Bet failed
To support their credentials troubles, the Italian side’s preparations were rocked by a wagering scandal that saw the cops check out the nationwide group’s Coverciano training centre ahead of their qualifiers in October to question Sandro Tonali and Nicolo Zaniolo. The duo consequently left the camp and Tonali was later on handed a 10-month restriction by the Italian Football Federation.
Juventus midfielder Nicolo Fagioli was likewise handed a seven-month restriction after being condemned in the examination, however he was called in Italy’s last 26-man team for Euro 2024.
His addition is a sign of the scarcity of assaulting choices in front of Spalletti.
Zaniolo and forward Domenico Berardi were dismissed of the competition through injury, while Marco Verratti and Lorenzo Insigne no longer play their club football in Europe and have actually faded from nationwide favour.
Injuries have actually impeded Federico Chiesa’s development, with the 26-year-old Juventus forward yet to regain the kind that saw him illuminate Euro 2020.
Gianluca Scamacca, who scored 19 objectives for Europa League winners Atalanta this season, is anticipated to lead the cutting edge however he has actually scored simply as soon as for Italy in his 15 looks.
Giacomo Raspadori is the other striking alternative at Spalletti’s disposal, however he has actually handled just 12 objectives throughout the last 2 seasons.
Defence is the very best kind of attack
All this indicate a side that will be constructed around its defence. Unsurprisingly, Azzurri are not doing not have for skill in this department– their 30-man initial team functions 11 eleven protectors.
Of these 11, 4 were from Inter Milan– previous to Francesco Acerbi’s late injury withdrawal– and offered the Nerazzurri’s parsimonious defence this year, the staying 3 Inter protectors are all most likely to begin in Germany.
The 22 objectives Inter yielded in the Serie A this season are the most affordable amongst all clubs in Europe’s leading 5 leagues. The accomplishment was accomplished playing a back-three. Duplicating a system with a group of protectors currently comfy playing in it feels a nearly no-brainer for Spalletti’s nationwide group at Euro 2024.
The supervisor fielded a three-man defence for the very first time in his period in the March 2024 friendlies versus Venezuela and Ecuador, with Italy going on to win both. The sample size is little however the ceiling might be high.
A backline consisting of Alessandro Bastoni and Alessandro Boungiorni– the most likely Acerbi replacement– with Federico Dimarco and Matteo Darmian at wing-back is, on paper, among the very best defences at Euro 2024.
Will that be enough to take them deep in the competition?
Spalletti confessed in an interview with Sky Italia that there are other nations that are at a greater level than Italy however backed his group to take on them.
“Our target is to return from Germany and hear Italians state, ‘We take pride in you,'” he stated.
Attracted a hard group that consists of Spain, Croatia and Albania, even a quarterfinal surface would go a long method towards assisting Spalletti fulfill this goal.
If the Italians can manage a not likely competition coup, they will sign up with Germany and Spain as the record three-time European champs.
⚽ Italy’s last team for Euro 2024 ⚽
Captain: Gianluigi Donnarumma
Goalkeepers: Gianluigi Donnarumma (Paris St Germain), Alex Meret (Napoli), Guglielmo Vicario (Tottenham Hotspur)
Protectors: Alessandro Bastoni (Inter Milan), Raoul Bellanova (Torino), Alessandro Buongiorno (Torino), Riccardo Calafiori (Bologna), Andrea Cambiaso (Juventus), Matteo Darmian (Inter), Giovanni Di Lorenzo (Napoli), Federico Dimarco (Inter Milan), Federico Gatti (Juventus), Gianluca Mancini (Roma)
Midfielders: Nicolo Barella (Inter Milan), Bryan Cristante (Roma), Nicolo Fagioli (Juventus), Michael Folorunsho (Hellas Verona), Davide Frattesi (Inter Milan), Jorginho (Arsenal), Lorenzo Pellegrini (Roma)
Forwards: Federico Chiesa (Juventus), Stephan El Shaarawy (Roma), Giacomo Raspadori (Napoli), Mateo Retegui (Genoa), Gianluca Scamacca (Atalanta), Mattia Zaccagni (Lazio)
You can follow the action on Al Jazeera’s devoted Euro 2024 competition page with all the match accumulation and live text commentary, and maintain to date with group standings and real-time match results & & schedules.