When is it? How can you watch it? What are the possible line-ups?
Croatia and Italy meet in their Third Group A match at UEFA EURO 2024.
Croatia and Italy at a glance
When: Tuesday 25 June (03:00 GMT+8 kick-off)
Where: Leipzig Stadium
What: UEFA EURO 2024 Group B Matchday 3
What do you need to know?
Coaches Zlatko Dalić and Luciano Spalletti both have plenty to ponder going into this pivotal Matchday 3 fixture. Croatia have just a point so far after following up their defeat by Group B winners Spain with a 2-2 draw against Albania. Their once parsimonious back line has already been breached five times, and a positive result in Leipzig will require strong defensive foundations.
The Azzurri were also given a fright by Albania in their opening game – conceding inside 23 seconds – before recovering to win 2-1, though the holders had no answer to Spain next time out. Only one team have successfully defended their EURO crown, yet the minimum expectation for Italy is a knockout place and they have work to do. As do Croatia.
Possible line-ups
Croatia: Livaković; Stanišić, Šutalo, Erlić, Gvardiol; Modrić, Kovačić; Pašalić, Sučić, Kramarić; Budimir
Misses next match if booked: Ivušić
Italy: Donnarumma; Darmian, Bastoni, Calafiori, Di Lorenzo; Cristante, Jorginho; Barella, Pellegrini, Chiesa; Retegui
Misses next match if booked: Calafiori, Cristante, Donnarumma, Pellegrini
Form guide
Croatia:
Form (all competitions, most recent first): DLWWWD
Italy:
Form (all competitions, most recent first): LWWDWW
Expert predictions
Elvir Islamović, Croatia reporter
Croatia have got out of tougher situations. Their slogan – “Best when it’s hardest” – is wholly apt. It didn’t quite gel in the first two matches, but on both occasions things looked better in the second half. Dalić will surely make several changes, possibly leaving out Marcelo Brozović, moving Luka Modrić and Mateo Kovačić back and playing the talented Luka Sučić in front of them. Dalić must find a way; when the going gets tough, he usually does.
Paolo Menicucci, Italy reporter
After the positive start against Albania, the reigning champions were brought back down to earth by Spain. Spalletti is expected to make some changes to his starting XI, but most of all he will have to work on his players’ heads as the Azzurri too often appeared frustrated against La Roja. Facing Croatia with the fear of elimination could be a huge mistake. Italy can certainly play better than they did in Gelsenkirchen.
What the coaches say
Zlatko Dalić, Croatia coach: “We haven’t started the tournament well. We have not been at our true level. We are conceding goals too easily. In Qatar [at the 2022 World Cup], we conceded one goal in the group stage, and now we’ve conceded five in two matches. We don’t have Ivan Perišić in the top form he was in in Qatar. Some players are two years older, and we are playing against strong opponents. But I think the main issue is that we have been conceding goals too easily.”
Luciano Spalletti, Italy coach: “Croatia are not only a great team, but they are also very experienced. We’ll have to be switched on to gauge when to speed up the tempo of the game, and when to calm down and control possession. I made a mistake in not making some changes between the first and second games. So this time, I think I need to make some.”