At 3:00 a.m. on June 21, Beijing time, the second round of Group B of the European Cup group stage ushered in a key battle, Spain vs. Italy, which is also the battle for the top spot in the group between the two teams.
Judging from the historical head-to-head, this is the 11th time that the two teams have met in the World Series, and it is also the fifth consecutive meeting in the European Cup, which can be regarded as old rivals. In the last edition, the two teams met in the semi-finals, with Italy eliminating Spain on penalties to advance to the final and eventually win the championship; In addition, the last time the two teams faced off was in the semi-finals of the UEFA Nations League last year, Spain eliminated Italy to complete revenge and finally won the championship!
In the first round of the group stage, Spain defeated the opponent by 3 goals, ranking first in the group, and was in good shape; Judging from the game, after the replacement of the old and the new, the overall lineup of the Matador Legion is young and impactful, and in terms of technical and tactical play, it is not obsessed with passing and control, pragmatic and efficient, and pays more attention to offensive speed and efficiency, and counterattacks are sharp. Coach de la Fuente said: "This is a close contest, we have to be cautious and we will go all out to win!
Italy, as the defending champions, won the last game, but the team started slowly; In recent years, the Azzurri have increased their pass-and-control penetration capabilities on the basis of being based on defense, and the team's overall style of play is not only limited to defensive counter-attacks, but also more diverse. Coach Spalletti said in his pre-match press conference: "Spain are a good team, we need to play our own style, stay focused and give it our all!
Judging from the group situation, the winning side of this game will advance to qualify, while the losing side or both sides will draw, and they will fall into the final round of fire!