Euro 2024: Italy Plays Double with Scamacca Against Croatian Veterans, Albanians, and Spaniards… Group B Under the Microscope
The most challenging group of the Euro 2024 championship is expected to deliver on all its promises, with the risk of seeing a title contender eliminated in the group stage.
Sometimes clichés are unavoidable. The Euro 2024 Group B is undoubtedly the « group of death » in the competition, featuring Italy (the reigning champion), Spain (3rd in Euro 2021), Croatia (3rd in the 2022 World Cup), and Albania. Since the expansion to 24 nations, the top four third-placed teams from the group stage qualify for the round of 16: the three favorites could advance, provided they do not drop points against the surprising Albanians, who topped their qualifying group ahead of the Czech Republic and Poland.
Italy enters with a rejuvenated team and few certainties to defend their title. They struggled to progress from their qualifying group, finishing behind England and ahead of Ukraine. Spain is considered an outsider in the tournament, boasting some young offensive talents (Pedri, Lamine Yamal, Fermin Lopez, Nico Williams) and a flawless qualifying campaign ahead of Scotland and Norway. Croatia had to battle in a tough group, finishing behind Turkey but ahead of Wales.
Player Spotlight: Gianluca Scamacca
The Azzurri have been searching for a top-class striker for over a decade. Once touted as one of the brightest prospects in his position, Gianluca Scamacca (25 years old) had a tough season at West Ham last year but seems to have found his place at Atalanta Bergamo.
He played a key role in the Lombard club’s first European triumph by scoring six goals in the Europa League campaign. Powerful (1.95 m), mobile, and unselfish (eight assists this season), the « Italian Zlatan » has all the tools to be the main orchestrator for the Azzurri in his first major competition wearing the Italian jersey.
Interesting Fact: 0
A sign of the weakness of the Albanian league, no player selected for Euro 2024 plays there. Italy, located on the other side of the Adriatic, is the preferred destination for the Eagles, with ten players plying their trade there: Kristjan Asllani (Inter Milan), Berat Djimsiti (Atalanta Bergamo), and Nedim Bajrami (Sassuolo) are key figures in the squad. Led by Brazilian coach Sylvinho, a former coach of Olympique Lyonnais, Albania is seen as the underdog in Group B and even in the Euro, making their third appearance.
Surprise Team: Croatia
Eight finalists from the 2018 World Cup remain as Euro 2024 approaches, including midfield trio Marcelo Brozovic, Mateo Kovacic, and Ballon d’Or winner Luka Modric, who is likely to play his final international tournament for Croatia.
In addition to these experienced players, the young talents are proving themselves at the highest level, such as Josko Gvardiol (Manchester City) or Josip Stanisic (Bayer Leverkusen), while the prodigy Martin Baturina (Dinamo Zagreb) is poised to shine on the world stage. Used to being overlooked when mentioning favorites, the third-placed team from the 2022 World Cup could once again surprise.
Interesting Tidbit: French Backbone in Spain
The Spanish central defense has a strong French influence. Aymeric Laporte and Robin Le Normand are likely to form the backbone of the Spanish defense at Euro 2024. Laporte (28 caps), of Basque origin and trained at Athletic Club Bilbao, was twice called up by Didier Deschamps for France but never played before representing Spain from the Euro 2020 preparations. Le Normand (10 caps) was naturalized as a Spanish citizen last year, having played in Spain (Real Sociedad) for almost eight years.
With a lineup as competitive and diverse as Group B in Euro 2024, football fans can expect thrilling matches and unexpected outcomes as the tournament unfolds. Stay tuned for an exciting showdown between the veterans and the rising stars of European football.