Pressure Mounting on Italy
September’s round of Euro 2024 qualifiers will have a major impact on final qualification and Italy host Ukraine on Tuesday needing the three points in order to climb the standings. Our sportsbook offers the best markets and live betting in the top European leagues.
Italy Shining at Home
This game could decide second place in the group and Italy have a slight edge ahead of kick off in Milan, as Luciano Spalletti faces his first home game in charge. New boss Luciano Spalletti’s first game in charge ended in frustration after a 1-1 draw against North Macedonia on Saturday, a result which leaves the Azzurri three points behind Ukraine in second, albeit they have a game in hand on Tuesday’s opponents.
The Spalletti Factor will be a key factor in this tie, with the experienced coach looking to make a winning impact and Italy have won two of their last three matches in the country. With the pressure moving up a few levels, as qualification is potentially on the line, this match is unlikely to be filled with goals so if you’re betting online you should back the unders.
Italy only managed to score one goal in their previous home match in 2023 and they will be happy with a narrow victory to get out in front of Ukraine behind England at the top of the group. With away games against Ukraine and group leaders England still to come, Tuesday’s clash at San Siro has taken on added significance.
Marco Verratti and Jorginho have not been selected by the former Napoli boss, with other stars given a chance to shine in midfield this month.
Ukraine Full of Confidence
Despite playing their home qualifier with England on neutral venue in Poland, Ukrainian fans packed the stadium to roar their team on to a 1-1 draw. Ukraine have shown themselves to be resilient enough to suggest they can avoid defeat in Milan and would gratefully accept a low-scoring draw to maintain their advantage over Italy.
Ukraine didn’t play at the World Cup and for them, it will be important to qualify for the European Championship. Still, that seemed unlikely from a group packed with top teams, when it was clear that they have to be better than England or Italy. Ukraine have to avoid defeat on Tuesday night to stay with realistic chances but we won’t include them in our soccer picks and parlays.
The visitors have plenty of experience in their ranks for this tie, with Arsenal star Oleksandr Zinchenko expected to move into a midfield position for his national team. Roman Yaremchuk is tipped to lead the line for head coach Serhiy Rebrov, after completing a transfer deadline day move to Valencia.
Ukraine in Great Shape
Serhiy Rebrov’s well-organized team has now lost just three of their last 23 internationals. Italy have kept two clean sheets across their last 11 matches and Ukraine have been clinical in front of goal of late, netting three or more in three of their last four away internationals.
It is important to note that the two teams last played against each other back in September 2007 in this same competition with Italy winning both games. Ukraine have scored four goals combined in their last two win against Malta and North Macedonia.
Italy vs Ukraine Game Information
• Game: Italy (1-1-1) vs Ukraine (2-1-1)
• Location: Stadio San Siro, Milano, Italy
• Day/Time: Tuesday, Sept. 12, 2:45 p.m. ET
• Italy vs Ukraine Live Stream: fubo.tv
Italy vs Ukraine Betting Lines
Ukraine Expected To Keep it Tight
The hosts enter this clash as heavy favorites being priced at -200 on the three-way moneyline according to the latest soccer odds while the goal line is set at 2½.
Given these two have given away more fouls per game than anyone else in their group, this is likely to be a stop-start encounter, which should put a cap on the number of goals, as well as favoring the away side. A low-scoring draw would be amazing for Ukraine but Italy will be desperate to add three more points to their group tally and climb the standings.
