Overview
Belgium, in a period of turmoil, has fallen into a difficult group in this year's Nations League. Grouped with Italy and France, Belgium has only 4 points after the first 4 matches.
Belgium's only win so far has been at home to Israel, so coach Domenico Tedesco is desperate for a win against the hosts to prove his worth.
With a 5-point gap over France with only 2 matches left, the chance for Tedesco's team to enter the quarter-finals is almost closed.
During the November training session this year, the Belgian team continued to face personnel difficulties. Goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois refused to join the national team since August 2024 due to conflicts with Tedesco. Meanwhile, De Bruyne, Charles De Ketelaere, Jeremy Doku, Malick Fofana and Joaquin Seys were also absent.
Facing a crisis-hit Belgium is an opportunity for Italy to aim for 3 points. The Azzurri are still unbeaten in the 2024-2025 Nations League, with a record of 3 wins and 1 draw.
In addition, coach Luciano Spalletti's team is also the team with the most goals in League A with 11 goals. Frattesi contributed 3 goals, while Retegui, Kean and Raspadori also opened their accounts.
Despite being assured of reaching the quarter-finals, Italy still needs a win against Belgium to solidify their position at the top of the group. The EURO 2020 champions are also unbeaten against Belgium in their last four encounters, winning three.
Overall, Italy have been good against Belgium, winning 15 of their 24 matches and losing just four. Another win is within the Azzurri's grasp at the moment.
Human resources situation
As mentioned, Belgium are without a number of stars in this training session. However, Lukaku has returned to the squad and could start, with Openda moved to the wing.
On the other side of the front line, Samuele Ricci did not participate in this training session, with Manuel Locatelli as his replacement. Arsenal defender Riccardo Calafiori was also absent.
Expected lineup:
Belgium: Casteels, Debast, Faes, Theate, De Cuyper, Onana, Tielemans, Trossard, Bakayoko, Lukaku, Openda.
Italy: Donnarumma, Di Lorenzo, Bastoni, Buongiorno, Cambiaso, Frattesi, Barella, Tonali, Dimarco, Raspadori, Retegui.
The match between Belgium and Italy takes place at 2:45 a.m. on November 15 (Vietnam time).
