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Finland vs Italy Prediction & Betting tips
Five of the ten games in qualifying group J have been completed, and after the mountain festival, both Finland and Italy are making huge strides towards participating in the European Championship. With five wins and a goal difference of 16: 2 secured the Squadra Azzurra thereby the place on the sunny side.
The Elf could already prematurely secure the safe participation in the finals at eight points ahead of third, after the proud football nation at the 2018 World Cup was recently condemned to watch.
Meanwhile, the Huuhkajat – so far never in a European Championship or World Cup of the game – after a strong first round in which only the away game was lost in Italy, their first ticket for a European Championship finals also solve. Finally, five points after the recent coup over Greece already the distance to the group third Bosnia and Herzegovina.
It is Finland against Italy, according to odds of the bookmaker in this sixth match of Group J, the blatant outsider, but has two decisive advantages. For one thing, the Huuhkajat’s defensive line is as good as ever, and has been without a clean sheet four times in a row. And on the other hand, the kickers from the land of ten thousand lakes now play against a team at home, where the draw would be sufficient.
Thus, this starting position in Finland against Italy into the forecast certainly into it. The Finns are by no means doomed to victory, but can take it defensively as usual.
Finland:
It’s halftime in the European Championship qualifiers and the Finnish national football team is heading for the achievement of a dream that has been cherished for decades: finally, it’s time to be part of a big final.
The Huuhkajat owe this upswing above all to two factors. Firstly, the defensive chain in front of keeper Lukas Hradecky (Bayer Leverkusen) is currently in great shape. Only in the first group match, the first leg in Italy, it was in the 0-2 defeat two goals. Since then, the kickers from the land of a thousand lakes without defeat, without loss of points and especially without further congress by the group J.
Secondly, the former Schalke’s Teemu Pukki (Norwich City), who scored once more in the 1-0 home win in Tampere during the week – and also against Italy as the scene – once again scored the gold goal.
His seventh goal in the dress of the Huuhkajat alone in 2019 and a very important on top of that, with which Finland spends the mountain festival of the European Championship qualifying with five points ahead of pursuer Bosnia and Herzegovina.
The self-confidence of the underdog is correspondingly high, whose EM dream could finally come true, although the five upcoming games will certainly be hard work. A point win against the Squadra Azzurra would take the troupe of Markku Kanerva, who is now in the fourth year in office and under which there were only two defeats, undoubtedly.
But whether it actually enough for the European Championship, rather, will decide on October 12, 2019 in Zenica. Then Finland will have to play in pursuit Bosnia and Herzegovina in a veritable six-point match. The conditions are correct anyway, because the defense last held four times in a row the zero.
Only six shots were allowed against Greece. Only two of them came on the box of Bundesliga legionary Lukas Hradecky. Thus, in Finland against Italy a tip on a draw by no means far-fetched. Finally, the four-time World Champion with this result would live well in this top game.
Italy :
Almost two years ago, Italian football seemed to have reached its low point. After Antonio Conte had successfully started the generational upheaval in the run-up to the EURO 2016, but then ended his contract prematurely to switch to the Premier League, squadra Azzurra under Gian Piero Ventura missed for the first time in 60 years the qualification for one again world Championship.
A complete disaster for the four-time world champion, who then under Roberto Mancini experienced a further change. And this seems to have been fully exploited, because so far all five matches were won under the new coach, whereby Italy leads the group in qualifying group J with a strong goal difference of 16: 2 without loss of points.
The secret recipe of the new coach: a consistent crackdown. Under Roberto Mancini no outliers are tolerated. The last of them, with Moise Kean and Nicolo Zaniolo, had two of the country’s most talented young stars, both of whom, for disciplinary reasons, are not in the squad for the two qualifiers.
The reason for not considering: Both players came in the summer to a meeting of the Italian U21 too late. At least on the pitch, her absence at the qualifier in Armenia was quite noticeable. The heavily rejuvenated team seemed more sedentary than in the first four games and was even with 0: 1 in arrears.
The game was shot only in the final quarter hour. At that time, Italy had already played in excess for half an hour. Roberto Mancici, meanwhile, attributed the difficulties to the fact that half of the championship is already over in Armenia and players would be better off than his own squad, in which the offensive forces Federico Bernadeschi (Juventus Turin) and Federico Chiesa (Fiorentina) were also struck.
According to Italian bookmakers Italy is now in the clear favorites role against Finland, but is forced to make painful renovations. Marco Verratti (Paris Saint-Germain) received a yellow card in Armenia and has to take a break in the top flight in Tampere.
With 34 international appearances, he is by far the most experienced midfielder in the young and inexperienced team, which now has to pass another matriculation exam. Should the Squadra Azzurra win the away game, the margin could rise to third place up to ten points (depending on the outcome of the match between Armenia and Bosnia and Herzegovina).
That would be equal to four games still pending an early qualification. The young team will certainly not lack motivation.
Finland vs Italy head to head matches
23.03.19 EUR Italy Finland 2 : 0
06.06.16 FI Italy Finland 2 : 0
17.11.04 FI Italy Finland 1 : 0
11.06.03 EUR Finland Italy 0 : 2
29.03.03 EUR Italy Finland 2 : 0