The first “set-point”. Spain-Italyin addition to being a classic of European football, offers a pass for the round of 16, with command of the attached group. The 2-2 between Croatia and Albania, in fact, allows both to play qualification already tonight, provided they win, given that a draw would postpone any discussion until the last day. There would be two very dangerous cross-matches there and the possibility of settling for one point, although tempting, would not automatically exclude the risk of surprises.
Spain – Italy (9pm, Rai Uno and Sky)
The prospect of qualifying and making the match against Croatia pointless is tempting, but the mission is complicated to say the least. Spain, without reaching the levels of the past, remains a very strong national team, which represents a sort of crash test for the Azzurri Spalletti: WINor at least playing it on equal terms, would give an enormous boost on a mental level, while a defeat, even worse if deserved, could undermine the credibility of the group, with all the consequences of the case. Once upon a time there would have been no doubts about the type of match, with the Red Furies to dribble (often horizontally, in perfect tiki taca style) and us to defend ourselves, ready to exploit any counterattacks. Today, however, definitions are no longer in fashion, so it happens that we see Germany and England holding the ball and crossing little, a France that acts above all on the counterattack, an Italy that phrases and a very vertical Spain, so much so that they even leave possession to the opponents (see the statistics in the match against Croatia, with Dalic’s men superior in everything except the score). It is the fault, or merit depending on your point of view, of football globalisation, which is decisive in mixing the diktats of the past and “dirtying” their respective characteristics: Spain-Italy, in short, could surprise us even on a tactical level, provided that Spalletti and De La Fuente don’t invent some stroke of genius.
Spalletti doesn’t change his mind: “I want a convincing Italy, the key is to play football”
“I want to see an Italy that repeats the good performance it did against Albania, despite the fact that we have one of the best football schools in the world in front of us – he underlined Spalletti -. There are two ways to play football and win, the collective and the great champions who have the great shots. We have the first chance, that is the path we have to take because we lack the top player who wins matches alone. Spain has become a school of football because it has always played the same football, because it has had the courage to maintain the same idea of football over time, the same demand and the same availability on the part of the players. To get to those levels, you have to always propose the same idea of football: not once everyone is forward and once everyone is behind. You always have to try to play the game, not have any breaks and have that crazy desire to show that ours is also an important school.”
De La Fuente: “We want to win, this is like a final”
“We want to win because it’s an important match, we want to win because it’s against Italy and it’s like a final, we want to win them all – replied the Spanish coach De La Fuente -. We know them, we know their young players and we know that they are fit, they have great individuality and it’s like looking in the mirror, it will be a balanced match. We are not surprised, their game does not surprise us, we are ready to work in the mud, we know their competitiveness. We are aware of everyone’s potential and we are not surprised by the performances of France, Germany, Portugal, Italy, we will continue to work with humility to improve. We can play controlled football, but at the same time make faster transitions: we must interpret all these scenarios by exploiting the characteristics of our players.”
Spain – Italy, the lineups
Spalletti seems inclined to confirm the training already seen with Albania, although the doubt remains about Cristante, who could replace one of Frattesi, Pellegrini or Jorginho. De La Fuente, on the other hand, has no ballots on his mind, convinced that the 4-3-3 that swept away Croatia is the best available.
Spain (4-3-3): Unai Simon; Carvajal, Nacho, Le Normand, Cucurella; Pedri, Rodri, Fabian Ruiz; Yamal, Morata, Nico Williams
Trainer: De La Fuente
Bench: Raya, Remiro, Vivian, Grimaldo, Laporte, Jesus Navas, Merino, Baena, Zubimendi, Fermin Lopez, Joselu, Olmo, Ferran Torres, Oyarzabal, Ayoze Perez
Unavailable: Nobody
Disqualified: Nobody
Be wary: Rodri
Italy (4-2-3-1): Donnarumma; Di Lorenzo, Calafiori, Bastoni, Dimarco; Jorginho, Barella; Chiesa, Frattesi, Pellegrini; Scamacca
Trainer: Spalletti
On the bench: Meret, Vicario, Gatti, Mancini, Buongiorno, Darmian, Cambiaso, Bellanova, Cristante, Fagioli, Folorunsho, El Shaarawy, Retegui, Zaccagni, Raspadori
Unavailable: Nobody
Disqualified: Nobody
Be wary: Pellegrini, Calafiori
