The Azzurri knocked the holders out of the European Championship in France with a 2-0 victory in the first knockout round, goals from Giorgio Chiellini and Graziano Pelle sending Antonio Conte’s men through to the last eight at the expense of Vicente Del Bosque’s side. Both of those managers have now departed, though: Italy’s current boss is Giampiero Ventura, while Spain are now coached by their former Under-21 chief, Julen Lopetegui.
The two men got the current campaign and their tenures in charge of their respective countries off to the perfect start in September, Italy defeating Israel by three goals to one in Haifa and Spain thrashing Liechtenstein 8-0 on home soil. Given that only one of these two teams can qualify automatically for the competition scheduled to be held in Russia in two years’ time, Thursday’s meeting at the Juventus Stadium could be a decisive match, even if it is taking place early on in the process.
Paris Saint-Germain Marco Verratti is fit and available again for Italy after being ruled out of the Euros in France through injury, while usual suspects such as Gianluigi Buffon, Giorgio Chiellini, Andrea Barzagli, Leonardo Bonucci, Riccardo Montolivo and Daniele De Rossi have also been included in Ventura’s group of players. Youngsters Nicola Sansone, Andrea Belotti, Federico Bernardeschi and Alessio Romagnoli will all be hoping to be involved in some capacity, although it is likely that Ventura will opt for an experienced team against one of the best teams on the continent.
Spain’s squad, meanwhile, features 11 representatives from Barcelona and Real Madrid, including Sergio Ramos, Sergio Busquets, Andres Iniesta, Dani Carvajal, Gerard Pique, Jordi Alba and Alvaro Morata. Atletico Madrid may currently lead the way in La Liga ahead of their rivals from the capital and Barca but only two of their players – Koke and Saul Niguez – have been called up, with overseas-based stars David Silva, Javi Martinez, Pepe Reina, David de Gea, Jose Callejon, Nolito, Diego Costa, Thiago Alcantara and Ander Herrera also included in Lopetegui’s selection.
Spain will probably dominate possession despite being away from home this week, with Italy likely to play on the counter-attack. The Azzurri did have success when pressing the Spaniards high up the pitch in the summer, though, so that may well be a feature of their play once more; it will also be interesting to see whether Ventura opts for a 3-5-2 formation given that Spain have struggled against three-man backlines on more than one occasion in recent years.
Taking everything into account, it could be worth backing a 1-1 draw between these two sides in Turin. Italy are always tough to play against and have a habit of grinding out results even when they do not play particularly well, while Spain still possess plenty of quality across the pitch despite their disappointing showing in France. Silva could be an astute choice for anytime goalscorer, meanwhile.
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