TheCable

Once again Germany and Italy square up at a crucial stage of a major championship without any doubts the favorite to win is ITALY.

The reason is quite simple. Germany is yet to beat the Italians in EIGHT past tournaments meetings.

Italy of course will be without the suspended Thiago Motta, which might be a crucial point as both teams go at each other at the Stade de Bordeaux.

Daniele De Rossi is also a doubt for the Azzurri.

It is vital to know that the Germans will be playing at full strength while Italy is hugely disadvantaged with eleven players just a booking away from a ban and that includes Leonardo Bonucci and Giorgio Chiellini.

Coming into the championship, Germany’s strength was Thomas Muller’s nose for goals, their silky creativity like we witnessed at the FIFA World Cup 2014, which won them Gold, their tournament wherewithal and the immunity to withstand pressure.

Can these factors take them past Italy for once in a tournament?

But then their achilles heel might be their challenge of defensive carelessness and appalling weakness of their full backs.

The German Squad

In Germany the media made it absolutely clear that nothing short of a fourth European title will be acceptable. So, a loss to Italy will be a calamity.

The bogey Italian opponents might be the only team capable of turning their dream into a nightmare.

The Italians on the other hand can also be sometimes unpredictable in tournaments. But no one can take away from them their tactical acumen,track record of consistently standing up when its required in big championships and the toughness of its team to ride challenges.

However, the Italians are not infallable, they are prone to sub-standard self destruction when you least expect, so which side will be prominent?

Serie A Championship has been at its lowest ebb. Will that be a factor? Italian Media are skeptical of a win in this championship, bearing in mind the capitulation at the last World Cup. Will they be proven wrong?

Italians will hope so. They avoided their own buggy team- Spain. So, they might go all out to claim glory.

German Journalist, Steffen Potter of the uefa.com predicts that it is very likely that German Coach Joachim Low will stick with a back four in spite of the fact that he used three in defence in March’s 2016 4-1 friendly win against Italy.

“It’s likely that Löw will stick with a back four despite using three in defence in March’s 4-1 friendly win against the Azzurri, albeit with perhaps more defensive solidity in the form of Benedikt Höwedes,” he said.

“Germany’s players and staff have repeatedly said there is no Italy hoodoo – now they have the duty to prove it. The ingredients for a historic victory are all there: the Mannschaft have got better over the course of the tournament – Who would have thought?”

“Germany are the world champions and probably going to dominate possession. As their first massive test in this tournament, it will be interesting to see if they are up for it.”

BOTH COACHES ON THE GAME:

Joachim Löw, Germany coach

“This week we have analysed Italy and seen their other games – they don’t just have defensive qualities but also good attacking solutions. Of course they know how to defend and we’ve prepared for that and analyzed a few other things.

“I think we’re well prepared. It’s about a balance in between defence and attack – you must create chances, but you must take them because against Italy you may not have as many as against Northern Ireland.

“The winner could of course become champions. All the sides that make it this far have that goal; both Germany and Italy have that quality, but there’s still a long way to go. Maybe we’ll have a semi-final against the hosts, but it won’t be easy for them either. There’s still a long way to go, but of course the winners tomorrow may then be favourites for the title.

“We’re confident because we’re aware of our strengths. But it’s about the opposition as well – the stronger they are, the more we have to address their strengths. I’m not sure if De Rossi will play.

“Italy are very flexible in their line-up and with them there can always be a surprise in their team. I consider him a very important player for them, but in the end the Italians always have a solution.”

Antonio Conte, Italy coach

“We’re playing a very strong squad from every perspective. They’re a better side than Spain and reigning world champions. I think Germany are the most complete side in the world at the moment.

“They have a lot of strong players. They have a side with strong principles and organisation – my compliments to their coach and their players.

“In the last few days we’ve tried to study the opposition because it’s going to be a very different game to the Spain one. We’ve tried to identify areas where we can hurt Germany. We have a great deal of respect for them, but we’ll try to play our hand and play to our strengths.

“Italy versus Germany is a knockout match, a quarter-final, and a great match for us. If I were to go back in time a month ago it wouldn’t have been a contest because of the respective sides, but now we’re here after beating Spain.

“We’ll need to perform well to overturn the odds, but we’ve worked hard. No one starts as a beaten side. If we do win tomorrow, it will be extremely well earned.

“We’re not going to speculate on the condition of Daniele De Rossi but we should say that players must be fully fit for these very intense matches. I’m very confident in the overal quality of my squad.”