 |
| Roberto Mancini, Head Coach of Italy is interviewed following the UEFA EURO 2024 qualifying round draw at Messe Frankfurt on October 09, 2022 in Frankfurt am Main, Germany. |
The defending champions Italy were drawn on Sunday to face England, which they defeated in last year’s final, in qualifying for the 2024 European Championship.
Euro 2024, hosted by Germany, will be an opportunity for Italy to regain its pride after they failed to qualify for the World Cup finals in Qatar in six weeks.
Italy beat hosts England on penalties in the Euro 2020 final, a match delayed by the COVID-19 pandemic, at Wembley last year after finishing the game 1-1 after extra time.
Italy coach Roberto Mancini said: “I know we will have England or France, but that’s okay. It’s a good group of five teams, no easy games, all we can do ourselves. I try.”
Mancini told RAI Sport: “It’s one of those games that you get once, and as we saw in Palermo, we have to take every game seriously, even the seemingly simple ones. Simplest. Reacting to England’s qualifiers, manager Gareth Southgate told Sky Sports News.
“There weren’t too many surprises. We know the quality they have and we know their depth. England’s record first It’s generally not very good. We have to improve on that.”
The Euro 2024 qualifying groups
Group A: Spain, Scotland, Norway, Georgia, Cyprus.
Group B: Netherlands, France, Republic of Ireland, Greece, Gibraltar.
Group C: Italy, England, Ukraine, North Macedonia, Malta.
Group D: Croatia, Wales, Armenia, Turkey, Latvia.
Group E: Poland, Czech Republic, Albania, Faroe Islands, Moldova.
Group F: Belgium, Austria, Sweden, Azerbaijan, Estonia.
Group G: Hungary, Serbia, Montenegro, Bulgaria, Lithuania.
Group H: Denmark, Finland, Slovenia, Kazakhstan, Northern Ireland, San Marino.
Group I: Switzerland, Israel, Romania, Kosovo, Belarus, Andorra.
Group J: Portugal, Bosnia, Iceland, Luxembourg, Slovakia, Liechtenstein.
