GROUP: B

PLAYERS TO WATCH: Nicolo Barella

EXPECTED FINISH: Quarter-finals

Italy fixtures

The reigning European champions were drawn into the perceived ‘Group of Death’ for 2024. The Azzurri will compete in Group B this summer alongside three-time Euros winners Spain, 2018 World Cup finalists Croatia and Albania.

Luciano Spalletti’s side will begin the defence of their crown against Albania on matchday one at BVB Stadion. The next two games are where the Italians’ group stage heats up. First up they have Spain – who have knocked them out at the semi-final stage in the past two Nations League competitions – before rounding off the group campaign against Croatia, a team they haven’t beaten since 1942.

Here are Italy’s Group B fixtures in full:

• Italy vs Albania: 15th June (BVB Stadion)
• Spain vs Italy: 20th June (Arena AufSchalke)
• Croatia vs Italy: 24th June (Leipzig Stadium)

Should Italy win their group, as they did at the 2020 tournament, the Azzurri will face a third-placed finisher from either Group A, D, E or F. If they were to end the opening stages in second place, they would face a fellow runner-up from Group A (Germany, Switzerland, Hungary or Scotland).

If the cards fall as expected, Italy’s tournament will culminate with a repeat of the 2021 final at the quarter-final stage against England. They would have to be at their best again to bypass one of the pre-tournament favourites and continue their journey toward back-to-back European crowns.

Standings

Key players

Italy’s 2024 European Championship personnel list looks vastly different from the squad that came home with the crown in 2021. Stalwart defender Giorgio Chiellini has retired while it is unclear if his former Juventus team-mate Leonardo Bonucci, now at Fenerbahce, will be included. The Italians do, however, have an influx of talent ready to step up in 2024. Here are a few that should stand out this summer:

Nicolo Barella

Caps (goals): 53 (9)

Position: Midfielder

Club: Inter

An industrious yet graceful central midfielder with unrivalled work rate, Nicolo Barella is a mainstay in the Italian midfield. The 27-year-old has featured 53 times for his nation, scoring nine and assisting nine in his half-century of appearances.

Inter’s number 23 started every match and only missed 41 minutes across their six games in qualifying and has since captained Italy during their last international friendly against Ecuador.

Barella also enters the Euros after another stellar season for Inter – the midfielder made almost 50 appearances in all competitions, winning his second league title with the Nerazzurri in runaway fashion.

Federico Chiesa

Caps (goals): 45 (7)

Position: Winger

Club: Juventus

Federico Chiesa is one of the more polarising members of the Italian team. He has moments of pure quality, with his near qualification-clinching performance against Macedonia being one of the most recent examples, but he has often struggled to find consistent form at Juventus.

Admittedly, the former Fiorentina man has had his injury struggles to contend with. Six months after his 2020 heroics, he injured his right knee and missed almost a year of action. However, even upon his return, the winger has endured a lengthy barren spell since scoring in four of the Old Lady’s first five matches this season.

Italy are blessed to have the likes of Domenico Berardi and Nicolo Zaniolo who can occupy Chiesa’s position but Spalletti seems loyal to the his man. Will that faith in Chiesa be rewarded?

Giovanni Di Lorenzo

Caps (goals): 34 (3)

Position: Defender

Club: Napoli

Spalletti and Giovani Di Lorenzo have been synonymous with one another in recent years. The former Napoli manager bestowed the captaincy upon the right-back when he arrived at the Partenopei, eventually leading them to their first Scudetto since the 1989-90 season last term.

Di Lorenzo’s has remained an ever-present since Spalletti departed Stadio Diego Armando Maradona and has just about kept pace with his pre-Scudetto form. He remains an integral part of the national team under the leadership of his Napoli mentor and started four of Italy’s six qualifying matches as well as friendlies earlier this year.

Previous performances in the Euros

Italy’s victory over England in 2021 ended their 52-year wait for a second European Championship. Between their triumphs, they have almost always had a respectable record at the tournament, finishing as runners-up in 2000 and 2012 as well as making the semi-finals in 1988 and 1980.

Here are Italy’s previous performances in the Euros in full:

• 1960: Did not enter
• 1964: Did not qualify
• 1968: Winner (beat Yugoslavia in final)
• 1972: Did not qualify
• 1976: Did not qualify
• 1980: Fourth place (lost to Czechoslovakia on penalties)
• 1984: Did not qualify
• 1988: Third place (lost 2-0 to the Soviet Union)
• 1992: Did not qualify
• 1996: Group stage (third in Group C)
• 2000: Runners-up (lost 2-1 to France in final)
• 2004: Group stage (third in Group C)
• 2008: Quarter-finals (lost to Spain on penalties)
• 2012: Runners-up (lost 4-0 to Spain in final)
• 2016: Quarter-finals (lost to Germany on penalties)
• 2020: Winner (beat England on penalties in final)

Expectations

Italy’s betting odds to defend their crown currently sit at 14/1 with BetMGM, behind Germany, Portugal and fellow Group B contenders Spain. However, they were outsiders for the 2020 competition before shocking everybody and lifting the trophy at Wembley.

History likely won’t repeat itself in 2024, though. The Italians narrowly avoided the play-offs during the European qualifiers and were drawn into a difficult group. Fans should expect an appearance in the knockout stages and possibly the quarter-finals but going much farther than that might be beyond them.

Check out our Italy betting odds for all our latest prices throughout the European Championships.

Odds and player information correct at time of publication but subject to change.