High flying Italy and commendable Austria face each other at the iconic stadium of Wembley for an all important clash in the round of 16. Roberto Manchini's men are aiming to make their dominance felt to make it to the end and Austria stands in their way to spoil their party early.
Italy has been one of the most entertaining team to watch in the recent edition of the European Championship. Azzurri changed from their age old defensive flexibility to an attacking machine under Roberto Manchini and so far carrying a hundred per cent record in the competition. No goals conceded too. Their back to back wins with a three goal margin over Turkey and Switzerland defines everything about the team. The win over Wales made them group winners of Group A and locked them with Austria in the round of 16 stage.
Austria first ever appearance in the knockout stages of the Euros is engineered by manager Franco Foda who oversaw his side beat debutants North Macedonia and Ukraine either side of a Netherlands defeat. The Burschen have shown a fair display of football at the Euros, keeping possession and offering greater amount of attack then expected. Austria are dreaming high even after being paired with smooth sailing Italy in the pre-quaterfinal stage. They won't leave any leaf unturned for it.
Italy vs Austria Match Details :
When: Saturday, June 26th/ Sunday, June 27th
Timings: 00:30 (IST)/ 21:30 (CET)
Where: Wembley Stadium, London, England
Recent Form (Euro 2020)
Italy: WWW
Austria: WLW
ITA vs AUT Dream11 Team News :
Injuries & Suspensions
Giorgio Chiellini continue to train separately for his recovery from an injury he sustained during the Switzerland game while right back Alessandro Florenzi has also not been with the squad since Italy's Euro opener with Turkey. Di Lorenzo is set to feature at the right back role alongside Francesco Acerbi partnering Bonucci in the middle of the backline. Marco Verratti is set to keep his place in midfield despite Locatelli impressing a lot in his injury absence.
Franco Foda is relieved to know forward Christoph Baumgartner will feature against the Azzurri after suffering a head injury in his previous game against Ukraine. His goal guaranteed Austria's place in the round of 16 stage. Julian Baumgartlinger and Valentino Lazarro remain the only injury doubts while Martin Hinteregger situation also needs to be looked at. Most probably, the Eibtract Frankfurt will be fit to start the game.
Italy vs Austria Predicted Lineups :
Italy: Gianluigi Donnarumma, Giovanni Di Lorenzo, Francesco Acerbi, Leonardo Bonucci, Leonardo Spinazzola, Nicolo Barella, Jorginho, Marco Verratti, Domenico Berardi, Ciro Immobile, Lorenzo Insigne
Austria: Daniel Bachmann, Stefan Lainer, Aleksander Dragovic, Martin Hinteregger, David Alaba, Konrad Laimer, Florian Grillitsch, Xaver Schlager, Marcel Sabitzer, Christoph Baumgartner, Marko Arnautovic
Italy vs Austria Head to Head :
Italy have accumulated 16 wins compared to 11 for Austria in the overall 35 games both nations featured. They have shared points in eight of those. Although their last meeting ended in a draw in an international friendly back in 2008, Italy haven't lost in this duel since 1962. So, quite obviously, Austria haven't tasted success in their last five major competition meetings with the Azzurri.
ITA vs AUT Dream11 Team Prediction:
GK: Gianluigi Donnarumma (Ita)
DEF: Stefan Lainer (Aut), Leonardo Bonucci (Ita), Martin Hinteregger (Aut), David Alaba (Aut)
MID: Jorginho (Ita), Marcel Sabitzer (Aut), Marco Verratti (Ita), Lorenzo Insigne (Ita)
FW: Christoph Baumgartner (Aut), Ciro Immobile (Ita)
Gianluigi Donnarumma hasn't been tested so much in the group stages but he remains an important figure for the game with his world staring talent. Stefan Lainer owns the right-wing half role for his side and always possesses an extra attacking threat getting into the final third. David Alaba's captain performance in the group stages keeps him in almost every fantasy team guarded by the evergreen Leonardo Bonucci and Martin Hinteregger. Verratti is set to start in the midfield in place of Locatelli though the latter has been insanely good in the former's absence. Baumgartner is attracting interest from overseas for his top-notch performances and he is partnered by the top scorer for Italy in Euro 2020 Ciro Immobile.
Match Prediction: Italy 2-0 Austria
Italy is destined to create a new record of going 31 games in their history. Their stylish attacking style added by a composed defense with a cluster of stars playing in one unit makes them deadly and it will be a mammoth task for Austria to overcome. Roberto Manchini's side will make a clean sweep once more and move into the quarterfinal stages of the competition.
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