Croatia v Italy LIVE: Team news and line-ups ahead of pivotal Euro 2024 clash as Federico Chiesa dropped

Euro 2024 power rankings: Rating every nation’s chances after their first game of the group stage

While the favourites all appeared fallible coming into this European Championship, they have got off to strong starts across the board. Germany were most impressive of all and thumped Scotland in the tournament’s curtain-raiser in Munich to send out a signal that the hosts are a serious prospect, powered by the talent of Jamal Musiala and Florian Wirtz.

England, France, Spain, Netherlands and Italy were all among the first-round winners, while Slovakia earned a surprise – and controversial – win over Belgium and Romania thrashed Ukraine.

Below, we assess how every Euro 2024 nation stacks up after the first round of group games (this article will be updated after each round of matches).

Chris Wilson24 June 2024 19:40

Group B permutations

A reminder of what eachGroup B team has done and needs to do.

Spain: After beating Italy 1-0, Spain are through as group winners. They will play one of the four best third-placed teams in Cologne on Sunday 30 June at 8pm.

Italy: The holders can safely reach the last-16 if they avoid defeat against Croatia, but will be in jeopardy if they lose to the World Cup semi-finalists. If Italy lose to Croatia and Albania beat Spain, who are already through as group winners, then the holders will be out.

Albania: Realistically, Albania must beat Spain to have any chance of going through and they will be out with a draw or defeat. They could go through as runners-up if they beat Spain and Italy lose to Croatia, providing Albania’s goal difference remains superior than Croatia’s.

Croatia: Luka Modric and co. must beat Italy and would climb above the Azzurri with a victory, while they can still finish second if they beat Italy and Albania fail to win. A draw is unlikely to be good enough, even if Albania lose to Spain, and a defeat definitely won’t be.

Chris Wilson24 June 2024 19:35

Luis de la Fuente labels Spain best in the world after win over Italy

And here’s how Spain coach Luis de la Fuente reacted to that win.

Spain boss Luis de la Fuente is convinced his players are “the best in the world” after guiding them into the last 16 at Euro 2024 with a game to spare.

De La Fuente saw his side join hosts Germany in the knockout stage after a 1-0 victory over reigning champions Italy in Gelsenkirchen on Thursday evening before praising the men he has at his disposal.

Asked if it was the best performance over which he had presided at his post-match press conference, he said: “Yes, I do think it is the best Spain performance I’ve taken charge of. We played against Italy in the Nations League and we played well there, but I think this was a more compete performance tonight.

“I will never tire, as I mentioned yesterday, of really promoting Spanish football. I think we’re the best in the world in terms of interpreting various match situations, and of course that is really reinforced and strengthened when you win silverware.”

Chris Wilson24 June 2024 19:30

Nico Williams lights up Spain and gives Euro 2024 a flash of something unmissable

And here’s the report from Italy’s last match.

As Nico Williams weighed up Giovanni Di Lorenzo in the early moments of the second half on a charged evening in Gelsenkirchen, the Italy defender must have felt as if his night was never going to end. Williams had been everywhere but still had one more trick: Italy had compromised their gameplan in an attempt to finally subdue the thrilling Spain winger, but Williams carried the spirit of this young team and simply went again as he found the avenue to his left. A moment that had been building since kick-off finally arrived as Williams produced the cross that led to Riccardo Calafiori’s own goal. By the end, Spain had battered Italy 1-0.

Even as Luis de la Fuente’s side sealed their place in the last-16 with a game to spare, Spain deserved more. For the best part of an hour, they tore the holders Italy apart, led by Williams and his evisceration of Di Lorenzo. Spain really should have found the goals to seal a statement victory such a performance had merited, one of fearlessness that was summed up by irrepressible displays from their young winger Williams, and the even younger 16-year-old Lamine Yamal. Italy, who hung on long enough to threaten a late equaliser, were far from looking like the champions of three years ago.

Chris Wilson24 June 2024 19:25

Klaus Gjasula goes from zero to hero in dramatic Albania draw with Croatia

The report from Croatia’s last match.

Klaus Gjasula struck five minutes into stoppage time to rescue a 2-2 draw for Albania against Croatia in a thriller in Hamburg and keep alive their hopes of reaching the Euro 2024 knockout stages.

The 2022 World Cup semi-finalists looked to have secured a fine comeback win after Andrej Kramaric scored in the 74th minute to cancel out Qazim Laci’s early goal for Albania, then midfielder Gjasula inadvertently turned the ball past his own goalkeeper two minutes later.

But with time almost up, Albania attacked down the left and the ball was crossed to Gjasula who fired left footed into the corner to stun Croatia and set up a tense finale to Group B. After both sides lost their opening matches of the tournament, only final-game victories over Spain and Italy will likely be enough to see either qualify.

Chris Wilson24 June 2024 19:20

Luka Modric, the problem with ageing, and the worst day for Croatia’s best generation

It only took Luka Modric 18 years. In 2006, the summer before Lamine Yamal was born, he was an unused substitute against Brazil at Berlin’s Olympiastadion. He didn’t quite get on the pitch then – blame manager Zlatko Kranjcar for that one – but a remarkable longevity took him back to Berlin, into historic company. For the Croatia captain, playing in a ninth major tournament meant he joined only Cristiano Ronaldo and Lothar Matthaus among Europeans. A few months before his 39th birthday, he became the oldest ever player at European Championships; though perhaps only for a few days, until Ronaldo and Pepe go past him.

A day of record-breakers, however, became an advertisement for youth, rather than experience. Lamine Yamal, the youngest footballer ever at this level, some 22 years Modric’s junior, delivered a star turn. Croatia lost 3-0 to Spain. It wasn’t quite as dramatic a case of a glorious career ending at the Olympiastadion as Zinedine Zidane’s, later in the 2006 World Cup, but it was a day to prompt questions. Are Croatia, finally, too old? Will time eventually catch up with the timeless Modric, boyish as his physique remains, baggy as the shorts are?

A central-midfield trio with a combined 375 caps can still pass, but perhaps they can’t press. As Spain had less of the ball than in the past, Croatia did not get close enough to them. “We weren’t aggressive enough,” said manager Zlatko Dalic. “We were too slow and too far from the players.” He felt the problem was most apparent on the flanks, not his veteran midfield, but a product of ageing can be a reluctance to get closer to younger, faster players. A problem of ageing is that every defeat gets attributed to the possibility of decline. This might simply be “a bad day”, as Dalic said. Or it could prove something symbolic, the end of an era.

Chris Wilson24 June 2024 19:15

The young stars are out at Euro 2024 as football’s next era arrives

When Julian Nagelsmann sat down with Jamal Musiala on becoming Germany manager, he repeated a piece of advice he gave to the playmaker when they were together at Bayern Munich. That was to just keep playing as if he’s back on a small pitch having fun. Musiala’s age means that was just a few years ago, and it makes the words all the more striking, given he’s now effortlessly illuminating the greatest stage in European football.

Zinedine Zidane didn’t get this before dominating Euro 2000, when he was 28. Despite that gap, Musiala is being seen in similar terms to the French great then, at least as far as an individual European Championships goes. That is as the potential player of the tournament.

Part of that comes from Musiala’s uniquely balletic abilities, but it is also a wider shift. The majority of stand-out performers at Euro 2024 have been players that are still eligible for the under-21s or younger. Musiala’s main rival for burgeoning star, Jude Bellingham, is 20. Musiala’s teammate and scorer of the opening goal, Florian Wirtz, is 21. The scorer of perhaps the best goal, Turkey’s Arda Guler, is 19. Spain’s Lamine Yamal became the youngest player to ever appear at a Euros at a mere 16, and has thrilled alongside the 21-year-old Nico Williams in giving Spain a new intensity. The 18-year-old Warren Zaire-Emery is meanwhile considered more than ready to step in for a Didier Deschamps France, which would have been close to unthinkable during Deschamps’s time as a player with Zidane.

Chris Wilson24 June 2024 19:10

Team news

Luciano Spalletti has made three changes to the Italy side that was dominated by Spain last week.

He has switched to a three (or five) at the back, with Davide Frattesi losing his place in midfield and Matteo Darmian taking his place as a right wing-back.

In attack, Federico Chiesa is replaced by Giacomo Raspadori, while Gianluca Scamacca comes out for Mateo Retegui.

Chris Wilson24 June 2024 19:05

Team news

Plenty of change for both sides.

Croatia coach Zlatko Dalic has made four changes to the side that drew to Albania.

In defence, Josip Juranović is replaced at right-back by Josip Stanišić, while Ivan Perisic loses his place to Marin Pongracic, with Gvardiol shifting to left-back.

The midfield stays the same as expected, but in attack Andrej Kramarić moves to centre-forward while Lovro Majer moves out for Luka Sucic on the right and Bruno Petković is replaced by Mario Pasalic.

Chris Wilson24 June 2024 19:00

Line-ups

Croatia XI: Livakovic; Stanisic, Sutalo, Pongracic, Gvardiol; Modric, Brozovic, Kovacic; Sucic, Kramaric, Pasalic.

Italy XI: Donnarumma; Di Lorenzo, Bastoni, Calafiori, Darmian; Jorginho, Barella; Raspadori, Pellegrini, Dimarco; Retegui.

Chris Wilson24 June 2024 18:54