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On Friday evening, the second quarter-final match will begin - three-time world champion Italy will clash with tournament debutant Ukraine. Both teams fought hard to earn their place in the top eight - Italy, the winners of Group E, narrowly defeated Australia in the round of 16, while Ukraine faced a penalty shootout against Switzerland in their match. Quarterfinals Italy - Ukraine Venue: AOL Arena, Hamburg Referee: Frank de Bleeckere (Belgium) Time: June 29, 22:00 Lithuanian time Road to the quarterfinals Italy: Italy performed well in the group stage, defeating Ghana 2-0, Czech Republic with the same score, and drawing 1-1 with the USA. In the round of 16 against Australia, after a nerve-wracking match, Italy secured victory with a penalty shootout. Ukraine: Ukraine started the World Cup with a humiliating 0-4 loss to Spain. However, they bounced back in the second match with a 4-0 win over Saudi Arabia. In the crucial match against Tunisia, Ukraine won by a narrow margin. In the round of 16 against Switzerland, they advanced after a penalty shootout. Head-to-head matches Italy and Ukraine have played three matches against each other. The statistics clearly favor Italy with 2 wins and 1 draw. Their most recent match took place on June 2 before the World Cup, where both teams failed to score, while in the Euro 1996 qualifiers Italy won 2-0 in Ukraine and 3-1 at home. Statistics and facts Italy In the last two World Cups, Italy failed to reach the semifinals. In 2002, they lost in the quarterfinals to South Korea after extra time, and in 1998, they were eliminated in the quarterfinals after a penalty shootout against eventual champions France. The last team to eliminate Italy from the World Cup within 90 minutes was France in 1986 with a 2-0 victory. Since then, Italy lost in penalty shootouts three times and in 2002 conceded a golden goal. Italy has not lost in 22 consecutive international matches, their best streak since 1939. They have conceded only one goal in the tournament, scored by Cristian Zaccardo in the match against the USA. Fabio Grosso, Gianluca Zambrotta, and Gennaro Gattuso are Italian players who risk missing potential semifinal matches due to yellow cards. Meanwhile, Andrea Pirlo, Gianluigi Buffon, Fabio Cannavaro, and Simone Perrotta have played every minute so far in the World Cup. Ukraine Ukraine reached the quarterfinals in their World Cup debut and kept a clean sheet in the last three matches. Overall, in 2006, they went without conceding a goal in eight out of nine matches. Ukraine became the third team to reach the quarterfinals despite a crushing defeat in the opening match. In 1954, West Germany lost 3-8 to Hungary but later became champions, while in 1990, Cameroon reached the quarterfinals despite a 0-4 loss to the Soviet Union. If Ukraine's record scorer Andriy Shevchenko takes the field, it will be his 75th appearance for his country. The all-time leading scorer for Ukraine is Andriy Shevchenko with 31 goals in 68 matches. He is also the only Ukrainian player to score two goals in a World Cup, while the only players to have played every minute of every match are Oleksandr Shovkovsky, Andriy Nesmachniy, and Anatoliy Tymoshchuk. Opinions Italy Italian defender Alessandro Nesta stated that the team needs to work hard to stop Ukraine's leader Andriy Shevchenko. "To stop Sheva, you have to be 100% ready." - said Nesta, who will miss the match against Ukraine due to an injury suffered during the match against Australia. - "He is a unique player. To play against him, you have to be focused for the entire 90 minutes." Although Ukraine is considered an underdog in the World Cup, Nesta believes that Eastern European teams should not be underestimated. "No team is weak." - said the defender. - "We know the match won't be easy, so we will stay focused. They are physically very strong and have good individual players like Anatoliy Tymoschuk." Italy's captain Fabio Cannavaro expressed his frustration with people who believe that Italy reached the World Cup quarterfinals undeservedly. "I am very upset with what was said after our match against Australia." - said the Juventus player. - "People think we were lucky. But if there was a team that had an advantage in that match, then why did we play most of the second half with ten men?" He was sarcastically supported by head coach Marcello Lippi: "I would like to say something about these remarks that we were lucky. We had Francesco Totti, who hadn't played for three months, then Gianluca Zambrotta, Gennaro Gattuso, and Alessandro Nesta got injured. That's real luck." Lippi also rebuffed critics who claim that his team plays negative football: "In recent years, we tried to play a certain attacking style and had some really great matches that everyone enjoyed. But now, after two or three different matches, we hear exaggerated talk. We came to the World Cup with all our enthusiasm and a million problems, including Totti and other injuries." "To top it off, we have to deal with an unprecedented disorder in Italy," - continued the coach, referring to the Serie A shake-up scandal - "Now we hear that we are regressing and becoming old-fashioned - I think that's too much." Ukraine Ukraine coach Oleg Blokhin believes that the label of underdogs already attached to his team will help them perform better in the match. "We are not afraid to play against them; we will play freely and fight for victory." - said Blokhin. - "Italy has to feel the pressure because they are the favorites, but we have achieved what we wanted. We have already made history." Meanwhile, Ukraine's leader Andriy Shevchenko believes that his team will need to make an effort to defeat Italy. "The entire Italy team is made up of talented players," - said Shevchenko. - "Italy is the favorite, but the most important thing for us is to play with all our strength and compensate for our technical deficiencies. We need to regain strength after the intense and tough matches against Switzerland and take to the field as a united fist." The new Chelsea signing added that reaching the top eight of the World Cup is a huge achievement, especially after Ukraine's painful 4-0 loss to Spain in the first match. "After losing to Spain, many wrote us off," - said the forward. - "Reaching the quarterfinals is a huge celebration for both the team and all Ukrainians. The Italian football school is one of the best in the world, but the Ukrainian team has a big heart. We will try to make the match difficult for them and aim to eliminate Italy." Injuries and strategy Italy: Italy will be without defender Nesta in the match against Ukraine due to a groin injury. Nesta sustained an injury during the match against Australia and will watch from the bench. Daniele De Rossi has been suspended since the group stage, and Marco Materazzi, who received a red card in the match against Australia, will also be absent. Barzagli is likely to replace Materazzi in defense, making only his second start for the Italian national team since August 2005. The status of Vincenzo Iaquinta is also uncertain. The Udinese forward missed Thursday's training due to muscle problems. However, Italy has more options in attack, and coach Lippi may choose different formations. Although the coach tested a front trio of Totti, Luca Toni, and Pippo Inzaghi in training, it is believed that he may opt for a formation with a lone striker and a slightly withdrawn forward. Totti is expected to return to the starting lineup playing behind Toni. This would mean that Mauro Camoranesi could play on the right side of the midfield. Ukraine: Andrei Voronin will no longer appear in the World Cup for Ukraine after suffering a serious knee injury in the match against Switzerland. Due to this loss, Sergei Rebrov is likely to be pushed deeper into the field, with Andrei Vorobey taking his place upfront. However, after the suspension, Viacheslav Svidersky and Andriy Rusol returned to the squad, and together with Andriy Nesmachniy, they could form a three-man defense line. If Rebrov appears in the team, Ukraine will most likely stick to the same lineup that defeated Saudi Arabia and Tunisia in the group stage matches, except for Voronin. Predicted line-ups Italy (4-4-1-1): Buffon; Zambrotta, Cannavaro, Barzagli, Grosso; Perrotta, Pirlo, Gattuso, Camoranesi; Totti; Toni. Ukraine (3-5-2): Shovkovskiy; Nesmachniy, Rusol, Sviderskiy; Tymoschuk, Shelayev, Gusev, Rebrov, Kalinichenko; Vorobey, Shevchenko.
