England vs Italy: preview, team news and prediction

England are set to welcome Italy at the Wembley Stadium in the Euro 24 qualifying encounter on Tuesday evening.

Gareth Southgate’s side have been drawn into Group C alongside the Azzurri, Ukraine, North Macedonia and Malta. The first two teams from this group will book their tickets for next year’s Euro 24 in Germany.

The Three Lions have managed to place themselves in a strong position to qualify for the European championship as they are currently top of the group with 13 points from five games. Italy are second with 10 points from as many games, while Ukraine are third on head-to-head rule.

England managed to overcome the Azzurri’s challenge in the reverse game at the Stadio Diego Armando Maradona and they will be looking to do the double over the defending European champions.

However, Luciano Spalletti’s side will be desperate to take revenge for the previous defeat. In addition, they can’t afford to lose this game as a defeat on Tuesday means they will be at risk of losing the second spot.

Having missed out on qualifying for the World Cup last year, Italy will be keen on securing their place in the European Champions and performing at their best on a big stage.

Italy have appointed Spalletti as their new manager after dismissing Roberto Mancini following consecutive poor results. The former Napoli boss just took charge last month and the onus will be on him to help his country regain their lost perch.

England will be coming into this game off the back of a 1-0 victory over Australia in a friendly fixture. So, they are full of confidence ahead of Tuesday’s encounter. On the other hand, Italy defeated Malta in the previous game so they will enter this encounter on a high note.

Previous meetings

England don’t have a great record against Italy over the last four decades as the Three Lions’ only victory in the competitive game versus the Azzurri came early on this year in the reverse game of this Euro 24 qualifying round.

The biggest disappointment for Southgate’s troops in recent times was the agonising defeat against Italy in the final of Euro 20 at the Wembley Stadium. So, England will be keen on winning the game on Wednesday and jeopardise Italy’s qualification hopes for next year’s European Championship.

How to watch

The game will commence at 7:45 pm UK time and the match will be televised live on Channel 4. Radio commentary will be available on Radio 5. Match going fans can buy England vs Italy tickets at Seatsnet as official channels will be sold out.

Team news

Bukayo Saka has been forced to withdraw from the England squad due to a muscular issue that he picked up against RC Lens in the Champions League. So, he has now joined Luke Shaw, Ben Chilwell, Reece James, Callum Wilson, Eberechi Eze and Tyrone Mings on the injury list.

Southgate hasn’t called up anyone to replace the Arsenal star so it is likely that Jarrad Bowen could start in place of him.

As for Italy, Sandro Tonali and Nicolo Zaniolo have been released from the national camp after Turin police started an investigation against the players for illegal betting. So, they aren’t in contention to feature in this encounter.

Federico Chiesa and Mattia Zaccagni have been withdrawn due to injury issues so they aren’t available to play in this encounter as well.

Predicted line-up

Southgate provided game time to the fringe players in the last game against Australia and is expected to start the key players in this encounter.

The England boss usually likes to deploy the 4-2-3-1 system and it’s likely to be the same on Tuesday. Jordan Pickford should be in goal for England and in front of the Everton star, Kyle Walker, Marc Guehi, Harry Maguire and Levi Colwill should be the defenders. John Stones has just returned from injury and hasn’t played a full game yet. So, he might have to settle for a place on the bench.

Jordan Henderson, Jude Bellingham and Declan Rice should be the midfield trio for the Three Lions, while James Maddison, Harry Kane and Bowen could be the front three. Marcus Rashford and Phil Foden are likely to be used as substitutes.

Expected England line-up against Italy

Pickford; Walker, Guehi, Maguire, Colwill; Bellingham, Rice, Henderson; Maddison, Kane, Bowen

As for Italy, Spalletti is set to continue with his preferred 4-3-3 formation. Gianluigi Donnarumma is expected to be between the sticks for the Azzurri, while Giovanni Di Lorenzo, Giorgio Scalvini, Alessandro Bastoni and Federico Dimarco should be the back four.

Manuel Locatelli is likely to be the deep-lying playmaker and just in front of him, Davide Frattesi and Nicolo Barella should complete the midfield trio.

Moise Kean and Domenico Berardi could be on the flanks, while Giacomo Raspadori is expected to be leading the line for Italy in this encounter.

Expected Italy line-up against England

Donnarumma; Di Lorenzo, Scalvini, Bastoni, Dimarco; Locatelli, Frattesi, Barella; Kean, Raspadori, Berardi

Key players

Kane is the talismanic figure for England so Italy will have to keep him quiet if they want to come away with a positive result from this encounter.

Bellingham has enjoyed a stellar start for Real Madrid this season so it is going to be interesting to see whether he can continue his goal-scoring prowess for his national team.

Bowen has also had a productive start for West Ham United this season and it remains to be seen how he performs as he is expected to start amid Saka’s injury absence.

As for Italy, they don’t have that many world-class stars in their squad and they will be relying on team play to win this encounter. But, England will have to keep a close eye on Berardi as he possesses the qualities to win his team single-handedly.

Spalletti is likely to go with a pretty young backline so England will look to take advantage of that. But Scalvini and Bastoni are extremely talented players so they would be looking to showcase their talent against a strong opposition on the international stage.

Midfield is the strongest area of Italy and they have players in there – who can control the game with possession and also can put their names on the scoresheet. So, they will be aiming to win the midfield battle but it won’t be an easy task as England also got top-class players in their engine room.

Attack is a bit weak for the Azzurri as Kean and Raspadori don’t have much experience playing at the highest level.

Prediction

England are currently well-resourced in every department so they will be coming into this game as a favourite, especially given they will be at home. But, Spalletti’s side have enough firepower to hurt Southgate’s side and come away with all three points.

However, England are an extremely difficult team to beat in the qualifying rounds so they are likely to win this game and secure their place in the European Championship next year. England 2-1 Italy