Football prediction Greece vs Italy

Overview

The confrontation between Italy and Greece is more meaningful than a normal friendly match. Both teams are trying to overcome the disappointment after failing to win a ticket to the 2026 World Cup and see this as an opportunity to prepare for new goals in the future.

With the Italian national team, the defeat in the World Cup play-off round continues to extend the forgettable period of one of the most traditional football nations in the world. After overcoming Northern Ireland in the semi-finals, Azzurri succumbed to Bosnia & Herzegovina in the penalty shootout and officially missed the biggest football festival on the planet.

Despite having won EURO 2021, the team that has won the World Cup four times has not been able to return to this playground since 2014. That reality forced the Italian Football Federation to start a new reconstruction.

After the departure of Gennaro Gattuso, who had just taken over the team in the qualifying round, U21 team coach Silvio Baldini was assigned a temporary duty while waiting for the FIGC to elect a new President and appoint an official captain.

This strategist has called up a young squad with many faces who have never worn the national team jersey. Initial tests bring positive signals when Italy defeated Luxembourg 1-0 in the middle of the week thanks to a goal by young striker Pio Esposito.

The away trip to Heraklion will be the next opportunity for young talents to assert themselves before the Azzurri enter the challenging UEFA Nations League campaign with opponents from France, Belgium and Turkey.

Meanwhile, Greece could not even qualify for the World Cup play-offs after only finishing third in the qualifiers. This continues to be a big disappointment for the football that once won EURO 2004, when the last time they participated in the World Cup was in 2014.

Impressive performances in the UEFA Nations League before once created many expectations. Greece even defeated England right at Wembley and ended the campaign with the same score as the "Three Lions".

However, the recent form of the team under coach Ivan Jovanovic is causing much concern. They lost to Paraguay, drew with Hungary and had to rely on an equalizer in the 90+5 minute by Giorgios Masouras to avoid losing to Sweden in the most recent friendly match. That achievement makes the pressure on Jovanovic increasing, especially when they are about to enter a difficult group in the Nations League with the presence of Germany, the Netherlands and Serbia.

This encounter is therefore considered an important test for both teams. For Azzurri, this is an opportunity for the young generation to prove their ability. As for Greece, a positive result will help them regain confidence after a series of disappointing matches in the past time.

Expected lineup:

Greece: Tzolakis, Vagiannidis, Retsos, Mavropanos, Tsimikas, Zafeiris, Kourbelis, Triantis, Tzolis, Douvikas, Pavlidis.

Italy: Donnarumma, Fortini, Comuzzo, Ahanor, Bartesaghi, Ndour, Lipani, Pisilli, Fini, Esposito, Koleosho.