Italy vs. England: Tactical Preview of International Friendly
England travel to Italy to round off their first international break of 2015, fresh off the back of a thumping 4-0 win over Lithuania in the European qualifiers.
The match against the Azzurri is only an exhibition, but it does give Roy Hodgson the chance to exact revenge against a team who beat them at the FIFA World Cup 2014.
Italy Setup
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If you've ever wondered how tense it is up there on the hot seat of international management, look no further than Antonio Conte receiving death threats, per the Toronto Sun, over the revelation that Claudio Marchisio injured knee ligaments in warm-up training for Italy.
It removes one dollop of quality from a squad strangely shorn of it; if you look at the Azzurri's roster for the match against England, it's almost alien in its make-up due to the lack of established stars.
Conte has stuck to his back three while at the helm of the southern European nation and will likely lean on his Juventus charges again. But up front there are serious question marks: Are things so bad that an out-of-form Graziano Pelle is called up, in addition to Sampdoria's Eder, who was born in Brazil?
The Azzurri have shown a willingness to go two up front, so expect combination play in the final third in the most traditional of manners.
England Setup
Roy Hodgson confirmed to journalists after the Lithuania victory that several of his players would be returning to their clubs. Raheem Sterling was to go home, Danny Welbeck picked up an injury during the game and will not feature, and James Milner is nursing an issue that requires treatment from Manchester City.
It leaves the Three Lions rather scarce up front, as Daniel Sturridge had already withdrawn from the squad, and more or less forces Hodgson into a situation where he has to start with one striker in case one gets injured and he can't replace him. Captain Wayne Rooney will likely get the nod, leaving Harry Kane on the bench again.
It is a friendly, so the boss will assess his options and rotation elsewhere will occur. Hodgson confirmed Leighton Baines would drop so that Kieran Gibbs and Ryan Bertrand could share a game, and Chris Smalling could come in for Phil Jones.
Ross Barkley and Theo Walcott are wild-card selections to start in what is presumed to be a 4-3-3.
Key Point 1: A Tempered Attack?
If anything, England can only be accused of being too gung-ho at the World Cup 2014. They flew out of the blocks in the first game in Manaus and left themselves uncharacteristically open at the back, opening holes for Claudio Marchisio and Antonio Candreva to exploit.
But this isn't the same Three Lions side, and it looks a far cry from the Azzurri outfit that eventually triumphed 2-1 that night in June. England's philosophy and style of play is truly taking shape under Hodgson now, whereas Italy seem stuck between two managers and two ideas.
The visitors will attack anyone now, that much is clear, but the thought process behind each move is more deliberate, and the approach is well-understood by the players. It won't be reckless in Turin from Hodgson's men, but they won't sit in and defend.
It's an opportunity to test their newfound system against a world-class defence; beating Switzerland's Steve von Bergen and Lithuania's amateur-esque line is one thing, but how about Giorgio Chiellini and Co.?
Key Point 2: 1 vs. 1 at the Back
The combination up front is, as yet, unclear, but Conte should select a 3-5-2 formation, which plays two proper strikers. One will drop in to an extent and link play, but it is a veritable front two.
That means England's centre-backs face the rare proposition of going one vs. one at the back; given the opposition they've played in a weak qualifying group so far, they've only ever come up against one striker for whom they can share the marking responsibility.
Pelle and Ciro Immobile have shown in their brief time together that they can function well as a duo, while Manolo Gabbiadini is playing well for Napoli and could have something to say in the absence of Mario Balotelli.
Phil Jagielka and Smalling are the likelier nods given Jones and Gary Cahill played the first game, and they'll need to work out very quickly how they are going to deal with a two-punch combo that both holds the ball up and creates space for secondary runs. If England play without a "proper" holder, it could be a real mano y mano battle.
*England injury information obtained firsthand.
