As part of the final match of the European Football Championship, the players of the national teams of Italy and England will come face to face. Which side will win the decisive match of the tournament?
Italy
The Italian team made a splash at the current European Championship. At first, the Italian national team did a great job in the group stage, managing to win three victories in three matches without conceding a single goal. Before the start of the tournament, Italy already had a wonderful winless series, and still its game was a real revelation for many fans. In the first match, the Italians smashed the Turkish national team to smithereens, after which they broke away from Switzerland, and in the last match of the group stage they defeated Wales with a minimum score. The playoffs began for the Italian squad with a duel against Austria, which they managed to beat only through overtime. Then there was a victory over Belgium, and in the semifinals there was a real battle with Spain, which they managed to beat only in a penalty shootout.
England
Meanwhile, the England national team is holding one of the worst tournaments in its history. Despite this fact, Gareth Southgate's team is mercilessly criticized. At first, the British were accused of adhering to cowardly tactics, scoring one goal and going into defense, after which they were accused of scoring a controversial penalty, thanks to which they reached the final of the European Championship. According to the majority of experts, there was no foul against Sterling, and the referee should not have appointed an 11-meter kick that helped the "three lions" to get to the final of the tournament. The main achievement of the team is still the victory over Germany in the 1/8 final, where Southgate's tactics helped to defeat the Bundestim with a confident score of 2: 0.
Statistics and figures:
- England is a small favorite of the meeting;
- Italy has won only once in 3 matches in regular time;
- The British have won three times in 5 previous meetings;
- The last face-to-face meeting of the teams was a friendly and took place in 2018;
- The previous face-to-face meeting of the opponents ended with a score of 1: 1;
- In each of the 4 previous matches, the opponents scored at least one goal against each other.
Forecast
Throughout the tournament, I supported the Italians with my bets, and they often passed easily. It is unlikely that anything will change in this meeting. Although Italy is not the favorite of the match, however, in the upcoming confrontation, it will do everything to leave the Three Lions team without trophies.
