Greece vs Italy - prediction, team news, lineups

Having some missed retired connected the upcoming World Cup, Greece and Italy volition wrapper up the 2025-26 play with an planetary affable connected Sunday.

Now looking up to their adjacent UEFA Nations League campaign, which kicks disconnected successful precocious September, the teams volition convene successful Crete.

Match preview

After yet different qualifying failure, fallen giants Italy are opening a rebuild, and a youthful squad was selected for their archetypal campy since losing a melodramatic World Cup playoff.

Painfully missing retired connected a spot astatine this summer's finals, the Azzurri successfully saw disconnected Northern Ireland successful the semis but were past beaten by Bosnia-Herzegovina connected penalties.

Despite winning the Euros 5 years ago, the four-time satellite champions past reached football's planetary showpiece successful 2014, and they indispensable ticker connected again arsenic events unfold successful North America.

Following the swift exit of Gennaro Gattuso - who had lone been hired during the qualifiers - Silvio Baldini is present serving arsenic interim caput manager of La Nazionale.

A caller imperishable assignment is owed aft FIGC statesmanlike elections instrumentality spot aboriginal this month, truthful the Under-21s brag has led Italy into a brace of post-season friendlies.

His young squad - mostly made up of uncapped players - were archetypal successful enactment connected Wednesday, when Inter Milan's Pio Esposito scored a second-half victor against Luxembourg.

Now, a speedy travel to Heraklion volition connection different accidental for caller endowment to radiance earlier a caller Nations League radical - which besides features France, Belgium and Turkey - gets nether mode successful the autumn.

For their part, Greece failed to adjacent scope the World Cup playoffs, finishing 3rd successful a radical yet topped by Scotland - truthful their past quality astatine FIFA's apical tourney besides dates backmost a twelve years.

Much much was expected aft immoderate awesome performances successful the erstwhile Nations League, wherever they had beaten England astatine Wembley and ended level connected points with the Three Lions.

As a effect of that downturn, caput manager Ivan Jovanovic is present nether immoderate pressure, peculiarly pursuing 3 consequent friendlies.

Having mislaid astatine location to Paraguay and drawn 0-0 successful Hungary earlier this year, the Galanolefki needed a last-gasp leveller to debar decision against Sweden connected Thursday.

Though Kostas Tsimkas gave Greece the pb successful Solna, they past conceded doubly earlier Giorgios Masouras struck backmost from adjacent scope successful the 95th minute.

Even so, they person lone won erstwhile successful 8 games earlier Sunday's friendly, which builds towards a pugnacious Nations League radical containing Germany, the Netherlands and Serbia.

Greece International Friendlies form:

L D D

Greece signifier (all competitions):

L W D L D D

Italy International Friendlies form:

W

Italy signifier (all competitions):

W W L W L W

Team News

Of the Italy squad selected by Baldini, lone Esposito, Niccolo Pisilli, Marco Palestra and skipper Gianluigi Donnarumma had antecedently been capped astatine elder level. 

Though Lorenzo Venturino withdrew owed to wounded - and rising prima Palestra sat retired the Luxembourg crippled with a insignificant thigh occupation - nary less than 15 players made their Azzurri debut connected Wednesday.

With astir of his planetary teammates already connected the beach, Donnarumma alternatively earned his 82nd headdress astatine the property of 27, and the Manchester City goalkeeper volition again diagnostic down an unfamiliar defence.

By contrast, Greece fundamentally picked a full-strength broadside to look Sweden, skippered by Benfica striker Vangelis Pavlidis successful the lack of injured skipper Tasos Bakasetas.

Seeking an progressively uncommon win, Jovanovic is improbable to marque galore changes, truthful stars specified arsenic Tsimikas and Christos Tzolis should commencement again.

Having helped Como suffice for the Champions League by plundering 14 goals successful Serie A, Tasos Douvikas volition anticipation to propulsion past Andrews Tetteh and into the hosts' starting lineup.

Greece imaginable starting lineup:

Tzolakis; Vagiannidis, Retsos, Mavropanos, Tsimikas; Zafeiris, Kourbelis, Triantis; Tzolis; Douvikas, Pavlidis

Italy imaginable starting lineup:

Donnarumma; Fortini, Comuzzo, Ahanor, Bartesaghi; Ndour, Lipani, Pisilli; Fini, Esposito, Koleosho

We say: Greece 1-1 Italy 

Though they are ranked 35 places little by FIFA, an experienced Greece broadside should commencement favourites against an Italian squad missing astir each of their elder players.

However, the hosts person been successful dismal signifier for respective months, meaning a younger, much motivated Azzurri mightiness clasp retired for a draw.

For information investigation of the astir apt results, scorelines and much for this lucifer delight click here.