European champions Italy can add another trophy to their collection this week as four teams will battle it out for the 2020-21 UEFA Nations League title. The Azzurri hosts Spain in the first semifinal on Wednesday.
Bookmaker 10Bet has Italy as the favorite for the contest offering odds at 2.20 for the home win. The odds are at 3.40 for a Spain victory and at 3.05 for the draw.
※ Current Odds Date & Time: October 5th, 11:00 A.M. (EST)
These two, of course, also met in the EURO 2020 semis and Italy advanced by winning the penalty shootout following a 1-1 draw. Overall, the matchup has featured three draws in the past five games, which shows that the sides are evenly matched and a lot will depend on who gets the small details right on the day.
Italy will enter the game on a 37-match unbeaten run. The team played out a disappointing 1-1 draw with Bulgaria in their first game as the European champions, but they have started to pick up momentum again and should feel extremely confident of their chances in the Nations League.
The semifinal will be played at San Siro, which has been a real fortress for Italy through the years. They have played there 45 times and haven’t yet suffered a single defeat winning 32 of the outings.
To celebrate another victory, the hosts will have to overcome the absence of their best goalscorer. Ciro Immobile picked up a muscle injury last week and missed out on the Nations League squad.
With Immobile out of the picture, the team needs Lorenzo Insigne to return to form. The Napoli winger had posted six goal involvements in five games leading up to the Euros, but he ended up having a fairly quiet tournament by his standards.
Meanwhile, Spain needs to get something extra out of multiple players. Luis Enrique will be without a number of players who featured in the Euros and the list includes both of his main strikers Alvaro Morata and Gerard Moreno.
Spain’s form has been shaky throughout the year, but they are also a team that’s tough to beat. La Roja’s results include just two regulation-time defeats since November 2018.
Enrique’s men will have far less pressure on them playing as underdogs and it should help them to produce a good performance. Italy’s unbeaten run is mightily impressive but it can’t go on forever and Wednesday’s match will be one of the toughest tests the streak has faced since it started in September 2018.
