Italy vs Bosnia & Herzegovina

Stadio Carlo Castellani sets the stage for Italy’s last international friendly before their trip to Germany as they take on a lowly Bosnia & Herzegovina.

Italy’s final warm-up fixture for Euro 2024 pits them against a Bosnia team they’ve defeated in three of their four previous H2Hs (D1), netting 2+ goals in each victory. That theme aligns with their recent scoring exploits, with Luciano Spalletti’s men bagging over 1.5 goals in three of their last five outings (W3, D2). Yet, their opening June friendly produced a toothless affair against Turkey at Renato Dall’Ara (0-0), though it was their third clean sheet in five games. Spalletti has a stern test ahead, with ‘Gli Azzurri’ heading to Germany to defend their European Championship title. Despite carrying a tag as reigning holders, they’re not among the favorites, even though they’ve only lost once in ten matches since June 2023 (W6, D3).

On the other hand, Bosnia’s failed attempt to qualify for their first European Championship as an independent country saw manager Savo Milosevic get fired in April. His successor, Sergej Barbarez, hasn’t turned the Dragons’ fortunes around, with a 3-0 friendly loss against England earlier this week condemning them to a fifth consecutive defeat, all of which saw Bosnia concede 2+ goals. Perhaps more worryingly, that result marked the visitors’ sixth loss on their last seven road trips (W1), with four of the most recent six witnessing a scoring blank from the Bosnians. One of the two exceptions was a humiliating 4-1 defeat at Luxembourg in November 2023, testifying to Bosnia’s severe crisis.