EURO 2020 Preview: Without De Bruyne, how midfield maestro Verratti can lead Italy to victory against Belgium – tactical analysis

Alas, we head into the EURO 2020 quarter-finals with a couple of tasty prospects on offer. Switzerland vs Spain looks to be a tense match after the Spaniards finally found their shooting boots, and of course, there is the small matter of Italy vs Belgium – two of the standout teams in the tournament so far. Although, both of their last matches fared slightly less well than their fantastic group stage displays.

In this tactical analysis, we are going to uncover both of their recent matches, why Italy struggled against a plucky Austrian side who gave them a late scare, and an insight as to who could be the key difference versus Belgium. We will also discuss Roberto Martínez’s tactics for Belgium, the team selection decisions he has to make, and why their defence could potentially be a worry.

Italy lacked quality inside both boxes against Austria

Against Austria, Italy lacked the quality necessary to win the game at both ends of the pitch in normal time. They looked to get the ball out to the wings in the final third, utilising their wing-backs and wide forwards as an avenue to access the penalty area. However, the movement of the players off the ball limited Italy in this aspect, as they rarely made the runs into the area to necessitate a cross.

Italy’s lineup versus Austria.

They began in a 4-3-3 shape, with Chelsea midfielder Jorginho reverting to his Napoli role at the base of midfield, with Nicolo Barella and Macro Verratti ahead of him. It looked much more like a first-choice starting XI in the last game, after rotating versus Wales, with Leonardo Spinazzola, Francesco Acerbi, and Giovanni Di Lorenzo coming in to replace Emerson, Alessandro Bastoni, and Rafael Toloi, respectively. Arguably the biggest mistake in the lineup was swapping out Juventus Federico Chiesa for Domenico Berardi.