Holders Italy will face Switzerland in the last 16 at Euro 2024 as they look to retain the trophy they won so dramatically at Wembley three years ago.
The Azzurri have had a mixed start to this year’s tournament, with an unconvincing win against Albania foillowed by a resounding loss against Spain and a lucky draw with Croatia that saw a 98th-minute leveller from Mattia Zaccagni take them through to the round of 16.
And Luciano Spalletti’s side will face a well-drilled Switzerland side with plenty of attacking ability in their last-16 tie in Berlin. Murat Yakin’s team, which boast talents including Manuel Akanji, Granit Xhaka and Breel Embolo, eased to a 3-1 win over Hungary before drawing with both Scotland and Germany to ensure they advanced in second in Group A.
And so the Olympiadstadion is set for a tie between two evenly matched sides with plenty of history between them – will the holders advance to the quarter-finals, or can the Swiss spring an upset in Berlin?
Here’s everything you need to know ahead of the game including all the latest team news.
When is Switzerland v Italy?
The match will kick off at 5pm BST on Saturday 29 June at the Olympiastadion in Berlin.
What TV channel is it on?
The match will be shown on BBC One with coverage starting around 4.30pm. The match can also be streamed live online via iPlayer. You can find a full list of which channel is showing each match here.
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What is the team news?
There are no known injury concerns for either side.
Wing-back Silvan Widmer is suspended, so any of Dan Ndoye, Fabian Rieder or Nico Elvedi could fill in. Breel Embolo started against Germany for the first time this tournament, so we could see him line up in attack.
Otherwise, expect to see a similar line-up to the one that started against Germany, with Ndoye, Xhaka and Aebischer all prominent.
Luciano Spalletti made several changes to his starting line-up against Croatia, but another poor performance from the Azzurri showed that none of them really worked.
Lorenzo Pellegrini was brought off at half-time in that match, so it remains to be seen whether he was injured.
Roberto Calafiori is booked, so Gianluca Mancini could come in at centre-back.
Mattia Zaccagni may have earned a starting place after his world class finish for the winner, while Mateo Retegui was enough of a nuisance to suggest he may start over Gianluca Scamacca.
Matteo Darmian put in an uninspired performance, so don’t be surprised to see Spalletti revert to four at the back once more, with Dimarco and Di Lorenzo as full-back.
Giacomo Raspadori was another whose performance never suggested he’d done enough for a starting berth, so expect to see Federico Chiesa return too.
Predicted line-ups
Switzerland XI: Sommer; Schar, Akanji, Rodriguez; Elvedi, Freuler, Xhaka, Aebischer; Rieder, Ndoye; Embolo.
Italy XI: Donnaruma; Di Lorenzo, Bastoni, Mancini, Dimarco; Barella, Jorginho, Frattesi; Chiesa, Retegui, Pellegrini.
Odds
Switzerland 9/4
Draw 6/4
Italy 5/4
Prediction
Italy’s tournament pedigree and superior experience should see them through in a tight contest, though their lack of firepower may count against them. Switzerland 1-2 Italy a.e.t.
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