Malta-Italy is a match from the second day of Group C of Euro 2024 qualifying and is played on Sunday at 20:45: tv, formations, predictions
A less than memorable debut for reigning European champions Italy in the Euro 2024 qualifiers: the path to the German European Championship gets off to an uphill start.
England, who had not won against the Azzurri in an away match since 1961, took a little revenge, making the memory of the mocking night at Wembley in July 2021 a little less bitter, when they missed the chance to lift their first European title in front of their own public. Gareth Southgate’s national team did not disappoint expectations this time and won 2-1 at the ‘Maradona’ in Naples, thanks to a substantially dominated first half, which could have ended with a much wider deficit for Roberto Mancini’s men. There was a lot of confusion in the Azzurri’s half of the pitch, with Bellingham making the best of things in midfield. Italy then tried to react in the second half, taking control of the game. However, without being able to scratch the English rearguard, which was found unprepared only on the occasion of the goal of the oriundo Retegui, who immediately scored on his debut with the Italian national team. An all in all deserved defeat. And that leaves the Azzurri with zero points: the Malta exam, at this point, is one not to be missed.
Many new additions to the Azzurri’s eleven
With England on a clear path to first place – the first two in each group qualify directly – Italy is almost obliged to win in the coming fixtures: losing points on the road with the “small” teams could prove detrimental.
Marcolini
Leaded by former Chievo player Michele Marcolini, Malta have made significant strides forward in recent years and are no longer a selection that makes a bad impression left and right. That it is more competitive than in the past was also demonstrated last Thursday in the opener against North Macedonia (2-1), holding out for one half of the game and reopening the match five minutes from the end after finding the goal with midfielder Yankam. It should not, however, pose a big problem for Italy, who have always won in their previous eight matches, scoring a total of 21 goals and conceding only two. The last of these dates back to 2015, when they were also European Championship qualifiers and, with Antonio Conte at the helm, the Azzurri prevailed 1-0 in both the first leg and the return. Mancini has several changes in mind compared to the match against England: in defence Romagnoli should take Toloi’s place, while in midfield Tonali and Cristante are likely to find space, given the absence of Barella. In the trident Gnonto and Politano will start from the 1′. Finally, Retegui will be confirmed.
The prediction
Victory this time should come on time for the Azzurri, whose margin for error is shrinking after their debut defeat to the English. In any case, Italy’s limitations remain evident and that is why we do not expect a goleada from Mancini’s national team: the Azzurri are likely to score between two and four goals.
The Malta-Italy line-up
- MALTA (3-4-2-1): Bonello; Muscat, Borg, Attard; J. Mbong, Guillaumier, Kristensen, Camenzuli; Teuma, P. Mbong; Nwoko.
- ITALIA (4-3-3): Donnarumma; Di Lorenzo, Acerbi, Romagnoli, Emerson Palmieri; Tonali, Cristante, Verratti; Politano, Retegui, Gnonto.
POSSIBLE RESULT: 0-2
