Euro 2016 Schedule: Live Stream, TV Info, Odds for Saturday Quarterfinal Fixture
Germany will be out to make history in their UEFA Euro 2016 quarter-final match against Italy on Saturday, as Die Mannschaft will chase their first-ever win over the Azzurri at a major international tournament.
The two teams met at the semi-final stage four years ago, and Italy shocked everyone by beating the tournament favourites, 2-1. Manager Antonio Conte will be hoping for a similar outcome this time around, but the current world champions have grown since that clash and have a great chance to finally break the streak.
Here's everything you need to know about Saturday's match:
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Date: Saturday, July 2
Time: 8 p.m. (BST), 3 p.m. (ET)
TV Info: BBC One (UK), ESPN 2 (U.S.)
Live Stream: BBC iPlayer (UK), Watch ESPN (US)
Here are the latest match odds, courtesy of OddsShark
| 5-4 | 3-1 | 2-1 |
Preview
Germany and Italy both cruised through their round-of-16 matches, as Die Mannschaft beat Slovakia 3-0 and Italy controlled defending champions Spain on their way to a 2-0 win.
The results set up the top clash of the quarter-finals, between two of Europe's best and most storied teams. Germany and Italy have fought out several great battles over the years, but somehow the Azzurri always appears to come out on top.
Four years ago, fans and pundits alike assumed their dominance would come to an end. The Germany side that lost the semi-final 2-1 was believed to be much more talented, but experience and superior tactics won out. Four years later, the world champions are more battle-hardened and experienced, and the talent level on the Italian side seems even less impressive.
BeIN Sports' Tancredi Palmeri believes this may be the year the Germans finally overcome the Azzurri:
As shared by Fox Sports' On The Buzzer, so do the Germans:
Daniele De Rossi isn't expected to be fit in time to face the Germans, and even if he is, he'll play at less than 100 percent. Juventus' Stefano Sturaro is his likely replacement, and while the midfielder is a solid talent, he doesn't come anywhere close to matching the AS Roma star.
His likely inclusion highlights the perceived gap in talent between the two sides. Graziano Pelle has been one of Italy's top performers so far, but he's hardly a world-class option up front. The same can be said for Emanuele Giaccherini, a man who was widely questioned by Italian fans before the start of the tournament.
The Italians didn't need superior talent to get past Spain―their strong defence and impeccable work rate carried them to the win. But La Roja hadn't made a strong impression in the tournament before that match―Germany have, and they've yet to show any real signs of weakness.
Toni Kroos, Sami Khedira and Mesut Ozil have dominated in midfield, and with De Rossi likely out of the picture, they should find plenty of success on Saturday. Striker Mario Gomez may struggle against the vaunted defensive trio of Andrea Barzagli, Leonardo Bonucci and Giorgio Chiellini, but manager Joachim Low could opt for the more mobile Mario Gotze.
The Azzurri will likely aim for the counter-attack, using the raw pace of Eder to pull Germany's defence out of position. It worked against Spain, but La Roja gave up the midfield battle―Germany won't roll over so easily.
On paper, Germany have the talent advantage to finally beat Italy, but so did Belgium and Spain, and both teams lost against a tactically superior opponent. Don't be shocked if Conte pulls yet another miracle out of the bag.
