Spain vs Italy

A place in the 2022/23 UEFA Nations League title decider is up for grabs as Spain and Italy face each other in a mouth-watering semi-final at De Grolsch Veste.

Following an embarrassing last-16 exit to Morocco at the 2022 World Cup, Spain have a point to prove as they seek amends for a 2-1 defeat to France in the 2020/21 Nations League final. It’s up to new manager Luis de la Fuente to pick up where his predecessor Luis Enrique left off and lead ‘La Furia Roja’ to their first major honor since 2012. Enrique inspired Spain to a top-table finish in Nations League Group A/2 ahead of Portugal, Switzerland, and the Czech Republic, losing just once in six group-stage fixtures (W3, D2). However, his successor has got his managerial tenure off to a rocky start, overshadowing a 3-0 romping of Norway on his touchline debut with a disastrous 2-0 loss at Scotland last time out.

As for Italy, back-to-back busted attempts to qualify for the World Cup finals for the first time in the nation’s history have raised more than a few eyebrows, with fingers pointing at head coach Roberto Mancini as the main culprit. Despite leading ‘Gli Azzurri’ to Euro 2020 glory two years ago, Mancini’s future at the helm is anything but safe, especially after Italy’s lackluster start to the Euro 2024 qualifying campaign (W1, L1). They could still draw some confidence from beating fellow continental heavyweights England and Germany to a top-table finish in Nations League Group A/3 last year (W3, D2, L1). But since their only defeat in the group stage was a 5-2 humbling at the hands of Germany, the Italians cannot take anything for granted. Adding to this sentiment, they’ve only won two of their last six competitive games on foreign soil (D3, L1).