Tuesday presents a crucial showdown between England and Italy at Wembley Stadium as both teams vie for qualification to Euro 2024. England lead the group with an unbeaten record in five games while Italy are second with 10 points.
England have the opportunity to secure a spot at the 2024 European Championships with victory over Italy on Tuesday. Last time out they claimed a 1-0 win against Australia in a friendly, courtesy of an Ollie Watkins goal in the 57th minute.
Gareth Southgate rested several key players to have them prepared for the upcoming high-profile match against Italy, which turned out to be a successful decision. Despite a rather lackluster performance with fringe players, the Three Lions achieved victory, setting themselves up for Euro 2024 qualification with two games in hand.
Ukraine may have disrupted England’s perfect record on matchday five in Group C, but with 13 points, England only need to defeat Italy to secure a top-two finish. Even a draw would be sufficient if Ukraine, who have played an extra game, fail to beat Malta.
If England does not seal qualification this week, they will have two more opportunities in upcoming matches against Malta and North Macedonia. The Three Lions are currently on a remarkable 12-game winning streak in Euros qualifiers at home, having kept clean sheets in 10 of those matches.
Italy, who have a game in hand due to their unsuccessful campaign in the Nations League Finals last year, will aim to end England’s remarkable record. With so much on the line, this game is expected to be sold-out but you can still buy England vs Italy tickets on reselling sites such as Seatsnet.com.
Despite an alarming illegal betting scandal in their camp, The Azzurri looked to secure a remarkable victory over Malta on Saturday. 34-year-old Giacomo Bonaventura became the oldest player to score his first Azzurri goal in style by curling home a wonderful opener. Domenico Berardi joined the scoring with two brilliantly struck efforts, and Davide Frattesi continued his impressive run in Italy colors with a late goal, sealing a routine 4-0 victory in Bari.
Italy’s objective was nothing short of a multi-goal victory against Malta, as they had dropped points in the section last month with a 1-1 draw against North Macedonia. Saturday’s success put the champions back in second place in the standings. Italy and Ukraine, both with 10 points, are only separated by head-to-head results.
Their top-two chances remain uncertain until the end of the month, but they can rely on their Nations League ranking if they drop below the second position. Italy’s recent playoff experiences in World Cup qualifying ended in heartbreak against North Macedonia. England avenged their Euros final loss with a 2-1 win in Naples seven months ago. However, Italy have not lost a continental qualifier away from home since 2006.
ENGLAND VS ITALY HEAD-TO-HEAD AND MATCH STATS
- England have won only one of their last seven encounters with the European champions
- Italy have conceded more than one goal only twice in their last 12 encounters against The Three Lions.
- Italy have not lost a continental qualifier away from home since 2006.
- England is on a remarkable 12-game winning streak in Euro qualifiers at home.
- England have kept 10 clean sheets in their last 10 Euro qualifiers at home.
- Italy are unbeaten in their last six games in England against the Three Lions.
- Five of the last nine meetings between England and Italy have ended in a draw.
- Italy are unbeaten in their last three away games, with two wins and one draw.
- England have opened the scoring in their previous three Euro qualifier matches at home.
- England have won just one of their previous seven meetings with Italy, including losing the Euro 2020 final on penalties.
ENGLAND VS ITALY TEAM NEWS
Barring a hamstring injury suffered by Bukayo Saka, which led to his early departure from St George’s Park, England’s manager Gareth Southgate has a full squad at his disposal. He’s expected to make numerous changes after their uninspiring victory over Australia on Friday.
Captain Jordan Henderson, who was subjected to boos during the previous match, will likely make way for others. One of the changes will include Declan Rice returning to the lineup, while Trent Alexander-Arnold might continue in a midfield role, potentially ahead of Kalvin Phillips.
Several other players like Jude Bellingham, Harry Kane, Phil Foden, Jordan Pickford, and Kyle Walker are expected to rejoin the starting lineup. John Stones, who made a cameo appearance against Australia, will likely form a partnership with Harry Maguire in defense.
Before their recent victory over Malta, Sandro Tonali and Nicolo Zaniolo faced gambling allegations and withdrew from the Italy camp. Federico Chiesa, Ivan Provedel, and Mattia Zaccagni also withdrew due to injuries. As a result, Nicolo Fagioli, who is under investigation but was not called up, will not be in the squad. Italy will see Berardi on the right wing again after his impressive performance against Malta.
Luciano Spalletti has made changes to the Italy squad, bringing in Stefan El Shaarawy and Samuele Ricci to replace Nicolo Zaniolo and Sandro Tonali. With the absence of Ciro Immobile and Mattia Zaccagni and the return of Federico Chiesa and Gianluca Scamacca from injury, Spalletti might opt for Moise Kean up front.
Giacomo Bonaventura’s historic goal might not guarantee him a place in the lineup, as fellow goalscorer Frattesi could feature. Napoli captain Giovanni Di Lorenzo should return at right-back, displacing Matteo Darmian from the starting XI.
ENGLAND VS ITALY PREDICTED STARTING LINEUP
England predicted starting lineup:
Pickford; Walker, Stones, Maguire, Trippier; Alexander-Arnold, Rice; Foden, Bellingham, Rashford; Kane
Italy predicted starting lineup:
Donnarumma; Di Lorenzo, Mancini, Bastoni, Dimarco; Frattesi, Locatelli, Barella; Berardi, Raspadori, Kean
ENGLAND VS ITALY PREDICTION
England could secure their spot in the Euro’s 2024 tournament in Germany with a victory over Italy. They have a three-point lead over Italy in Group C and are looking for revenge for the defeat in the last European Championships final, which took place in the same stadium. While both teams have evolved since that match, the desire for payback remains, especially for the English fans.
Italy have faced a barrage of setbacks, with Sandro Tonali and Nicolo Zaniolo leaving the team due to ongoing investigations related to betting.
Despite an injury-hit Italy attack having a productive outing against Malta, their upcoming match against a stronger and defensively solid England side is likely to bring an end to Italy’s impressive 22-game unbeaten run in away Euro qualifiers.
England’s performance against Australia may not have been entirely convincing, but with key players returning well-rested, they are poised for another hard-fought victory that can secure their qualification for the upcoming tournament with two games to spare.
