Today in the European championships there will be three more meetings, but the evening match between Belgium and Italy will attract the most attention from football fans. The most interesting overview of today's matches is provided by - Eurofootball.com.
Match time and venue:
On June 13 at 22:00, at the "Stade des Lumieres" stadium. The match will be broadcast live on LRT television.
Tournament situation:
These will be the first matches of these national teams in the championship. The other two teams in the group - Ireland and Sweden, will start their match at 19:00.
Coaches' comments:
Marcs Wilmots (Belgium): "A victory in this match would give us confidence, and a defeat would shake it. Italy is the most prestigious and strongest team we could start the championship with, so we must be in our best form from start to finish. I think now, when their backs are against the wall, they are even more dangerous. They have one of the strongest leagues in the world, high-level players, and a well-prepared coach who has properly prepared the players for this match.
Antonio Conte (Italy): "Today there will be 46 warriors on the field - 23 in each team. When you feel such support from your country, you cannot help but fight, and we will see that in both our teams. The most important thing is that the players not only fight, but also keep a cool head and play as we have prepared in the last few days. There's no need to talk much about Belgium - everyone sees what they can achieve and all credit to them for having so many talented young players in their squad. Congratulations to Belgium, as it means they are doing great in the football world."
Players to watch:
Belgium: Romelu Lukaku
Italy's national team has one of the best defensive lines in the championship, and Belgium's attacking forces will face a serious challenge trying to overcome the opponent's defense. Lukaku, who scored 18 goals in the last "Premier League" season, will play in the attacking stronghold, where successful and productive play is expected from him.
Italy: Daniele De Rossi
Before this championship, the Italians lost Riccardo Montolivo, Claudio Marchisio, and Marco Verratti to injuries, so these losses will be felt in the position of central midfielders. Due to injuries to these players, De Rossi should become the player who will be the leader of the team in the defense line. Tonight, fighting against players like Eden Hazard and Kevin De Bruyne, De Rossi and other Italian defenders will have to work hard to prevent the opponents from breaking through the midfield.
Predicted lineups:
Belgium: Courtois; Alderweireld, Vermaelen, Vertonghen, Denayer, Witsel, Nainggolan, Mertens, De Bruyne, Hazard, Lukaku.
Italy: Buffon; Barzagli, Bonucci, Chiellini; Candreva, Parolo, De Rossi, Giaccherini, Darmian; Immobile, Zaza.
Specialists' predictions:
Rick Rosen ("Heavy"): "These matches could be much more important, unfortunately this is the first match in these championships for both teams, so both coaches are likely to focus more on not losing rather than on achieving victory. Italy 1 - 1 Belgium."
Paul Merson ("Sky Sports"): "I see Belgium as a group of individual players, not a team. Italy will be solid, as usual, and in the opening match I can't see anything that would determine the victory of one team or the other. Italy 1 - 1 Belgium."
Sean Donnelly ("All Sports News"): "I think Belgium will win this match and show that they are the strongest in Group E. However, Italy's strong defense line suggests that not many goals will be scored. Italy 0 - 1 Belgium."
Interesting facts:
In three official matches between these national teams, Italians have not yet lost to Belgians (2 wins, 1 draw).
In the last five matches of these teams, 18 goals were scored - 3.6 per match.
Belgium has lost five of the last seven matches in the European championships.
Italy was one of the four teams that did not suffer a loss in the qualifying matches.
In the 2000 European Championship, the last time Italy played an official match against Belgium, both team coaches - Marc Wilmots and Antonio Conte, were on the starting lineups for their teams and fought against each other on the field.
Italy has achieved the most draws in the history of the European Championships (15), they have also achieved the most goalless draws (8).
