Italy and Belgium both enter a new era when they meet at the Stadio Olimpico as Roberto Mancini and Mark van Bommel both take charge of their respective sides for the very first time.
Match Preview
Friday’s meeting kicks off a tough Group A1 campaign for both nations, who are joined by France and Turkey in a section that will play out across four matches apiece over the coming fortnight.
For Italy, it marks the first step of a full rebuild under Mancini, the architect of the country’s Euro 2020 triumph, following a third consecutive failure to reach the World Cup after a penalty shootout defeat to Bosnia and Herzegovina in the play-offs in March. The Azzurri head into the match on the back of a narrow 1-0 friendly win over Greece in June, their last fixture before Friday.
Belgium arrive having appointed Van Bommel following Rudi Garcia’s departure after their World Cup ended in the quarter-finals, beaten 2-1 by eventual runners-up Spain this past summer.
The Red Devils will also be looking to bounce back from a difficult season in the Nations League, having needed a 4-3 aggregate win over Ukraine in the promotion-relegation play-off last time out just to preserve their League A status, while Italy exited at the quarter-final stage of the same competition, losing 5-4 on aggregate to Germany.
History strongly favours the hosts. Italy have not lost to Belgium since 2015 and have won four of their last five meetings between the sides, including a 2-0 win at Euro 2016 and a 2-1 victory in the 2021 Nations League third-place play-off. The most recent meeting between the two nations finished 1-0 to the Azzurri..
Team News
Italy have already been forced into one change before a ball has been kicked, with Inter full-back Federico Dimarco withdrawing from the squad and being replaced by Atalanta’s Matteo Ruggeri.
Mancini’s squad also features nine new faces as part of his wider rebuild, including Cagliari midfielder Alessandro Romano, who turned down the chance to represent Switzerland, Brentford full-back Michael Kayode, and Nurnberg striker Mohamed Ali Zoma.
Moise Kean, so often Italy’s focal point in attack in recent years, may have to settle for a place among the substitutes, with Mancini expected to hand a starting role to in-form Inter Milan forward Francesco Esposito, who has scored five goals in nine international appearances since making his debut in World Cup qualifying.
Belgium have their own selection questions in attack. All-time leading scorer Romelu Lukaku has been included in the squad but is expected to start on the bench, with Charles De Ketelaere preferred as the central striker.
Napoli’s Kevin De Bruyne continues to be the creative heartbeat of the side and should retain his place in the starting XI, alongside experienced figures Leandro Trossard and captain Youri Tielemans.
Belgium have also lost some senior experience over the international window, with Axel Witsel confirming his retirement from international football and Mats Selz stepping away from the squad, while first-choice goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois is taking a break, opening the door for Maarten Vandevoordt to start between the posts.
Italy vs Belgium Predicted XI
Italy Predicted XI:
Donnarumma; Ghilardi, Bastoni, Scalvini; Di Lorenzo, Tonali, Barella, Ruggeri; Zaniolo, Esposito, Cambiaghi
Belgium Predicted XI:
Vandevoordt; Castagne, Faes, Mechele, De Cuyper; Raskin, Tielemans; Doku, De Bruyne, Trossard; De Ketelaere
Score Prediction
Italy 2-1 Belgium
