Italy – Switzerland – 16.06.2021 – Soccer Review

Just few days after their impressive performance against Turkey, Italy will play their second
game at the Euro 2020. The Azzurri will face Switzerland and once again the legendary
Stadio Olimpico will be hosting the event. Let’s preview it in these free soccer tips daily
that are about to follow. Stay tuned! We hope we could be useful to you.
Nobody doubts anymore about Italy’s quality. The Azzurri had the chance to be in the
opening game of the Euro and they did a magnificent job with a 3-0 win over Turkey. We
were disappointed at halftime because there were no goals in the first half, but after the
break Italy really showed what they are about. Turkey’s Merih Demiral had the bad luck to
score himself an own goal while Ciro Immobile and Lorenzo Insigne decided the game for
the hosts. It looked like an easy job in the second half.
Italy now had won their last nine matches which tells us that this team is enjoying some
impressive form. We must admit that Roberto Mancini is the main reason for this revival of
the Italian national team. He was appointed at the job just after Italy failed to reach the last
World Cup and he did some magnificent job about bringing the confidence back to the
players.
Against Turkey Roberto Mancini didn’t need to change his favorite 4-3-3 formation. He was
unable to use his best midfielder Marco Verratti because of an injury, but Jorginho, Nicolo
Barella and Manuel Locatelli did a good job in the midfield area to make sure Verratti isn’t
missed. Now the PSG star hopes to be recovered in time to face the Crusaders in the next
few days. Even if he doesn’t start the game, Verratti could be in line to enter pitch from the
bench in the second half.
Mancini surprised many people with his decisions regarding the attacking trio of the
Azzurri. Ciro Immobile is an undisputed starter, but it’s curious that Mancini chosed
Domenico Berardi instead of Juventus’ Federico Chiesa. Loaned to Juve by Fiorentina,
Chiesa was one of the Bianconeri’s best performers in the Serie A last season. We all
expected to see him as a starter at the Euro, but he remained on the bench in the first
game, entering the pitch in the second half.
Roma’s Bryan Cristante is an interesting option for Italy and the midfield area. Cristante is
clearly a player that Mancini likes, but he entered the pitch against Turkey from the bench.
The Roma man is an option for the head coach if he wants to refresh the line-up for the
next match.

Italy are a four-time world champion, but curiously they have won the European
Championship just once in their history – in 1968. In the last 21 years they reached the
final twice – in 2000 and 2012. They lost twice, though. Is it now the time for something
more? Clearly the Azzurri impressed us with their performance in the first day of the
competition.
Switzerland’s performance against Wales in the first round of the group stage was rather
disappointing. The Crusaders were favorites against the Dragons, but only won a point
with a 1-1 draw in Baku. Borussia M’gladbach’s Breel Embolo actually opened the score
with an assist from Xherdan Shaqiri, but Switzerland allowed the British team to equalise
just 16 minutes before the end.
It won’t be surprising if the Swiss manager Vladimir Petkovic make some adjustments in
his line-up for the next game. Most likely he won’t change his favorite 3-4-3 formation, but
some players could be replaced in the starting eleven. Guys like Denis Zakaria, Mario

Gavranovic and Steven Zuber are excellent options to be included in the line-up. They
could refresh the team and bring some new ideas. Switzerland must improve their
performance if they want to stand a chance against a football powerhouse like Italy. More
than anything else, they need some better confidence at the moment. That’s where
Vladimir Petkovic must show his skills in terms of motivating the team – that’s one of the
main ingridents
The trio of Granit Xhaka, Remo Freuler and Xherdan Shaqiri remains the most crucial part
of the Swiss team. These three players are the figures who must control the midfield for
the Crusaders and do all significant things with the ball. Shaqiri recorded an assist against
Wales, but generally all three of them could do better. One of Italy’s biggest weapons is
their midfield, so this where Switzerland must show their best levels in order to have a
chance.
Breel Embolo scored against the Dragons, but Benfica’s Haris Seferovic should offer more
in attack. He’s a top class striker who scored 22 league goals for his club in the previous
season. Against Wales Seferovic was somewhat quiet, though – he didn’t do enough to
impact the game and secure the three points for his team. He remains an untouchable
player in Switzerland’s starting eleven, though.

The Swiss head coach Vladimir Petkovic admitted that Italy are favorites against his team.
The Bosnian manager said that Italy made a great performance against Turkey and they
are the team to beat in this group. At the same time Petkovic promised that his players will
fight as much as they can to hurt the Azzurri. “It’s a good thing that we are underdogs”,
Petkovic admitted before the game. That’s probably Switzerland’s biggest chance here – to
be underrestimated by the opponent and use this in their favour.
That’s the free soccer tips daily for the Euro 2020 match between Italy and Switzerland
from Group A. We would hardly surprise you by saying that the Azzurri are the red hot
favorite here. Roberto Mancini’s team made a terrific impression against Turkey at the
Olimpico, so now the fans expect more of the same. It’s a big competition, though, so it
doesn’t really matter what you did in your last game – you must keep your high level in
every match. Italy are the team to beat here, but Switzerland should not be
underrestimated.