What Italy need to do to stop Germany in Nations League quarter-final – Football Italia – March 20 latest

LEIPZIG, GERMANY – JUNE 24: Alessandro Bastoni of Italy celebrates victory at full-time following the team’s draw in the UEFA EURO 2024 group stage match between Croatia and Italy at Football Stadium Leipzig on June 24, 2024 in Leipzig, Germany. (Photo by Julian Finney/Getty Images)

Ahead of the Nations League quarter-final between Italy and Germany in San Siro on Thursday evening, here is a look at what the Azzurri need to do if they are to take down Julian Nagelsmann’s increasingly impressive Nationalelf. 

Beating Germany will be no easy feat for Luciano Spalletti and his team. The visitors have only lost once over the last year, against eventual European Champions Spain in extra time of the EURO 2024 quarter-final. Their last defeat before then dates back to November 2023: A 3-2 friendly loss against Vincenzo Montella’s Turkey. 

Since then, Germany have put in an unbeaten Nations League group stage campaign, ending with four wins and two draws in a group that also contained the Netherlands, Hungary and Bosnia and Herzegovina. 

If Italy are to stop Germany in San Siro, here are the five areas that the Azzurri need to take advantage of. 

How Italy can stop Germany

Nullify Musiala

One major advantage for Italy is the fact that Florizn Wirtz is unavailable through injury. That means that Jamal Musiala is likely to be the starting playmaker in San Siro on Thursday night. 

Stopping Musiala is no easy task as it is, but with no Wirtz to worry about, nullifying Germany’s creator-in-chief becomes a slightly less daunting task. Italy will need to close down the Bayern Munich star as quickly as possible and limit the number of chances he is able to create for his teammates if they are to limit the output of the Germany attack. 

Take advantage of an untested attacking partnership

Musiala is expected to play behind centre-forward Jonathan Burkardt according to reports in the German press. 

Burkardt has only played twice previously for the Germany national team, off the bench in Nations League group stage matches against Bosnia and Herzegovina and the Netherlands. Musiala was not in the squad for either of those two matches, so stopping him becomes even more important for Italy given the opposition’s unacquainted partnership in attack. 

Watch out for the counter attack 

Germany have pace in abundance out wide in the form of Leroy Sane and Jamie Leweling, both of whom will provide a big test for Spalletti’s wing-backs of choice. Italy will need to be wary of Germany’s counter-attacking threat if they venture forwards. 

Exploit the right-wing 

If there is a weak-point to be found in this Germany team: It is probably at centre-forward and at left-back. 

David Raum and Maximilian Mittelstädt have been the go-to options on the left of the defence for most of the Nations League campaign, both of whom are relatively attacking-minded full-backs.

That brings the possibility of space opening up behind Raum, who is in line to start on Thursday night, more so than on the right, where Germany can rely on the experience and discipline of Bayern’s Joshua Kimmich. 

Make the most of set-pieces 

One weakness in Germany’s game has been their defending from set-pieces. Nagelsmann tends to instruct his team to defend free-kicks with a high line in a zonal marking system, which is considered a high-risk, high-reward strategy. 

Playing an offside trap and going zonal instead of man-for-man leaves the possibility of confusion and vulnerability in attacking set plays, an area that Italy could exploit with the height of their back three, which should feature Alessandro Bastoni and Riccardo Calafiori, both of whom have an eye for goal.