Game from inside or outside, with no margin for error. Italy challenges Austria at Wembley for the round of 16 and enters the final phase of Euro2020. The first of a long series of meetings that the fans hope will see Italy as the protagonist until 11 July. Up for grabs for the Azzurri, in addition to the passage of the round, the possibility of throwing off the mask and definitively accrediting themselves as one of the most serious contenders for the continental title. Italy, qualified as the first of the group with three wins, arrives in London with the intention of extending the unbeaten streak that has been going on for 30 games and thus exceeding the record set by coach Vittorio Pozzo between 1935 and 1939. One a victory that, without conceded goals, would also allow the Azzurri to break down the historic record of inviolability, 1,143 minutes, dug into the rock by goalkeeper Dino Zoff between 1972 and 1974. Austria led by coach Foda instead enjoys the result achieved , to date the best placement ever obtained by the red and white in international competitions, and is confident in the dream of writing a new chapter in his football history.
The coach Mancini sends the typical team onto the field at Wembley with the 4-3-3: in goal Donnarumma, in the center Bonucci is paired with Acerbi, Di Lorenzo in the band again to avoid accelerating Florenzi’s recovery, on the other side Spinazzola. In the median space to Barella, Jorginho and Verratti who after the injury took back his place to the detriment of Locatelli. Up front confirmed the trident Berardi-Immobile-Insigne who so far has proved reliable and full of offensive solutions.
The Austrians led by coach Foda show up instead with a 4-1-4-1, with Alaba again in defense despite the requests to play later and Grillitsch as the low director. In the middle Laimer, Schlager, Sabitzer and Baumgartner in support of the only striker Arnautovic, an old acquaintance of Italian football with a desire for revenge.
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This is the 38th match between Italy and Austria, projecting the red and white national team into the top 3 of the teams most faced by the Azzurri in history after Switzerland and France. In the previous 37 the Italian balance is positive and shows 17 wins, 8 draws and 12 defeats, with 49 goals scored and 56 conceded.
The last sporting disappointment dates back to more than 60 years ago, on 23 March 1958, when Italy lost in a friendly match in Vienna for 3 to 2. The first official crossing dates back to 1934, when football was practically another sport and the second world war loomed on the horizon: it ended 1-0 for the Azzurri. The most recent, on the other hand, was scored in 2008, in a friendly match: a 2-2 draw in Nice, Gilardino scored and Ozcan’s own goal. As for the international competitions at the Europeans there is no historical precedent while at the World Cup there were four meetings, all in our favor. The first in 1934 and then in Argentina in 1978, when the two teams met during the second group stage and the match was decided by a goal from Paolo Rossi. But the clash that remains in the memory is that of Italia ’90: the national team led by Azeglio Vicini beat the Austrians at the Olimpico in Rome with a header from Schillaci, in what was ‘his’ world championship before the disappointment on penalties in semifinal. Finally there is the 1998 World Cup in France, always in the groups: it ended 2-1 for the Azzurri, Baggio and Vieri on the net with the Austrians eliminated from the competition.