The Italian team is once again on the limit. Absent from the last two World Cups after being eliminated in the play-offs, they will do well now to secure direct access to the final stage of Euro 2024 without having to resort to the head and tail of the playoffs again to continue defending the continental crown achieved in 2021 at Wembley.
After defeating North Macedonia on Friday (5-2), ‘Nazionale’ is second in group C, behind qualified Englandwith the same points (13) as Ukraine, its current rival, but with particular ‘moderate’ favorability after a 2-1 victory in September at the San Siro.
Therefore, a draw was enough for Italy to seal their ticket to the final stage. The match will be held in Germany, in Leverkusen, because of the Russian invasion. The war on its territory forces the Ukrainian team to play home games in this qualifying phase on neutral ground. The first three are in Slovakia, Poland and the Czech Republic.
Within Bay Arena both Ukraine and Italy Both will have the support of their large communities in this part of Germany.
Spalletti, without fear
Spalletti, who knows how to reverse a negative environment that surrounds the ‘azzurra’, doesn’t want to hear about fear and will go out to win. “Can we win? The answer is yes, and it nullifies all the methods that exist,” said the coach yesterday. Captain Giovanni DiLorenzo, suspended against North Macedonia, he will play on the right and there may be other changes in attack.
Tsygankov warned
But Ukraine, who did not play on Friday with a game remaining today, have a fearsome attack Mykhailo Mudryk (Chelsea) and the Girona tandem of Artem Dovbyk and Viktor Tsygankov, who declared: “We want to go to the Euro Cup to make our people happy.” If they fail to reach their goal tonight, both Italy and Ukraine will play in the play-offs
Possible lineups
Bay Arena in Leverkusen, 8:45 pm
Ukraine: Bushchan; Konoplya, Zabarnyi, Matviyenko, Mykolenko; Stepanenko, Zinchenko; Tsygankov, Sudakov, Mudryk; Roman Yaremchuk
Coach: Sergey Rebrov
The
Italy: Donnarumma; Di Lorenzo, Gatti, Acerbi, Dimarco; Barella, Jorginho, Frattesi; Politano, Scamacca, Chiesa
Instructor: Luciano Spalletti
The
Referee: Jesús Gil Manzano (Spain)
Source: La Verdad
I’m Rose Herman and I work as an author for Today Times Live. My expertise lies in writing about sports, a passion of mine that has been with me since childhood. As part of my job, I provide comprehensive coverage on everything from football to tennis to golf.
