Group B at Euro 2024 was universally billed as the group of death, and it is set to claim at least one big name team on the final day. World Cup semi-finalists Croatia must win to book a knockout berth but defending champions Italy need at least a point to get the job done as well.
By Neel Shelat
Can Croatia’s Veterans Conjure a Last Hurrah?
Seasoned campaigners have been the key to Croatia’s impressive recent record which includes consecutive World Cup semi-final appearances. Even after Ivan Rakitić’s retirement, the midfield trio of Luka Modrić, Marcelo Brozović and Mateo Kovačić kept the good times rolling for a few more years. However, they finally seem to be past their prime now.
They found themselves dominated by a younger Spanish midfield trio and did not even have a good time against the energetic Albanians, with Brozović getting hooked at half-time. There are more question marks in attack in terms of goal-scoring, as now-35-year-old star forward Ivan Perišić is no longer as good as he once was. Still, Zlatko Dalić brought him into the starting XI against Albania owing to a lack of quality alternatives.
Croatia have been a shadow of their former selves both in and out of possession at the Euros so far, so they will need to come up with a very special performance in a must-win clash against the defending champions if they are to avoid a group stage exit.
Italy’s Quest for Control
It is not all smooth sailing for Italy either, as their tally of three points does not guarantee anything going into the final day. As long as they do not finish bottom of the group, though, they should be in a good position to advance. They should be thankful that their goal difference is not too bad after the game against Spain as they were thoroughly outclassed – to the point that just a one-goal defeat was a kind result for them.
In fact, Italy’s opening victory over Albania was not the most convincing either as they conceded the earliest-ever goal in Euros history and failed to kill the game off after taking the lead, only winning by a one-goal margin in the end. After their thoroughly dominant displays en route to the title three years ago, the Azzurri have not shown a similar level of control both with and without the ball in both games so far.
A defeat here could well bring their title defence to a premature end, so Italy will also need to improve on all fronts if they are to safely advance to the knockouts.
(Cover image from IMAGO)
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