Italy vs Wales Match Preview

Italy is ranked at 1st place in group A with 6 points as they come after winning the first two games and securing a ticket for the next stage of the European Championship. The dominating 3-0 win in the opener against Turkey was followed up by another convincing win 3-0 against Switzerland and now they could hold first place even with a draw.

The thing is I do not expect Italy to try hard and spend lots of energy in this game considering how tired the players already came to this event. They have Chiellini out with an injury which means in defense should play Acerbi but I would not be surprised if Mancini decides to give a rest to someone in midfield too. They still have a team with more quality than Wales but the motivating factor here and considering Italy might try to rest some players could prove to be a deciding one in the end.

Wales, on the other hand, is ranked at second spot with 4 points as they got a win and a draw so far, managing to remain unbeaten. The surprising 1-1 draw against favorite Switzerland seemed like something very casual but then they went and beat Turkey 0-2 in a duel where Gareth Bale was on fire and literally carried the team ahead, despite missing a penalty. He gave two assists there and of course, he is expected to play again from the start here.

In fact, Wales obviously is going to play with their best men here, which means not only Bale but also the likes of Ramsey who even scored against Turkey or James and Davies. All in all this Wales team is proving to be quite solid game after game and they have a golden chance here to match Italy which has already qualified and does not need the victory.

In conclusion, I think Wales can manage to cover +1.5 goals Asian handicap here. They can qualify with a draw here or if they lose with just one goal difference and Switzerland does not win with more than three goals against Turkey. So expect to see a Wales team trying to defend in numbers and even if Italy wins this game, I do not see them pushing that hard to win by two or more goals.