Spain vs Italy Preview

Spain will bid to become the first nation in history to win three consecutive major tournaments when they take on Italy in the final of Euro 2012 on Sunday July 1.

The Olympic Stadium in Kiev will be the setting for the showpiece contest which should be fascinating at the very least if played in the same fashion as the two sides Group C encounter.

That game finished 1-1 - a result which will do much to buoy the Italians heading into the final considering that they were the better team for the majority of the ninety minutes on match day one in Gdansk.

Nearly everyone expected Spain to stick around until the end of the championship however the Azzurri were largely unfancied three weeks ago on the back of the domestic match fixing scandal which appeared to disrupt Cesare Prandelli’s preparations.

But after a solid showing in the group phase, Italy improved markedly against England and Germany who both failed to nullify the threat and influence posed by midfield magician Andrea Pirlo.

The Juventus star may be 33 and in the latter stages of his career, but he is still quite evidently at his brilliant best.

Spain will hope not to replicate the mistakes made by Italy’s last two opponents and closing down Pirlo will be crucial towards their chances of justifying tournament favouritism and retaining their title.

Shutting Pirlo down should greatly limit the Italians resources and potency in attack, so Spain will look to pack the centre of the field out to reduce his space and control the lion’s share of possession.

Doing so may well mean the omission of a regular striker – a familiar feature of the Spanish team which could be lead in principle by Cesc Fabregas who will try to push on past Andres Iniesta and David Silva.

Italy will try and get Mario Balotelli free on the counter-attack and there is a definite potential for goals if the Manchester City hitman is in the same form as he was against Germany in the last four.

Major finals are usually tight affairs at the best of times and this clash certainly looks set to follow that trend, especially as both sides are likely to field a combined eleven midfielders between them.

Taking the obvious recent result into account also, a draw is a real possibility and it is easy to envisage both nations cancelling each other out until late in the day when the match may become more stretched.

Spain go into the final with a day’s extra rest under their belts, something which was perhaps needed after they beat Portugal on penalties.

Italy shocked spectators in the semi-finals by how fresh they turned out after two days less rest than Germany but it remains to be seen how much that effort has taken out of Prandelli’s ageing squad.

They have the ability to stay with Spain in ninety minutes and cause a fair few problems, but the Iberian’s should be in the best place to edge it in extra time.

The draw is 9/4 with Spain available at decent odds of 10/1 to land a result in extra time, with one goal likely to be enough in such circumstances.

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30/06/2012     © Frixo 2024