CRO vs ITA, Euro 2024: Wounded Italy and Croatia face Group B showdown

Italy, second with three points after its opening win over Albania, will be through to the last 16 as runners-up if it avoids defeat

Italy, second with three points after its opening win over Albania, will be through to the last 16 as runner-up if it avoids defeat. | Photo Credit: Getty Images

With wounds to dress and points to prove, Italy and Croatia face each other knowing their Euro 2024 survival is on the line in Monday’s decisive Group B match.

Italy’s chastening 1-0 defeat by a dominant Spain on Thursday and Croatia’s 2-2 draw with Albania after conceding a stoppage-time equaliser left both teams anxiously glancing at the table heading into their last game.

Italy, second with three points after its opening win over Albania, will be through to the last 16 as runner-up if it avoids defeat. It will be unable to progress, however, if it loses and Albania beats group winner Spain in the other Group B decider.

The situation is more pressing for Zlatko Dalic’s Croatia, which began the tournament with a thumping 3-0 loss to Spain and prop up the table with a point. It will go through as runner-up if it beats Italy and Albania does not beat Spain.

A draw, however, is unlikely to be good enough as no team has made the next round with two points since the Euro finals expanded to 24 teams in 2016 -- offering a place in the last 16 to the four best third-placed finishers.

GROUP B STANDINGS

Team	Points	Matches	Wins	Draws	Losses	GF	GA	GD
Spain	6	2	2	0	0	4	0	4
Italy	3	2	1	0	1	2	2	0
Albania	1	2	0	1	1	3	4	-1
Croatia	1	2	0	1	1	2	5	-3

Italy’s loss to Spain prompted damning headlines and national soul searching.

La Gazzetta dello Sport denounced Luciano Spalletti’s side as “Little Italy” while Corriere dello Sport demanded a “Reset”.

The loss was by a slender margin, but it should have been far more emphatic as Spain’s 20 attempts on goal contrasted with Italy’s four, its fewest in a Euro or World Cup match since at least 1980.

Spalletti said his players lacked freshness, and wondered whether they needed more rest after Spain’s relentless attacks left them chasing shadows for most of the 90 minutes.

Croatia’s struggles have come as a surprise to coach Dalic, whose side reached the World Cup semifinals in Qatar two years ago and the final in 2018.

“We didn’t expect to have such a difficult story in these two matches, it has been a struggle,” he said after their draw with Albania.

A major issue for Croatia has been its sleepy starts to games. It conceded three goals to Spain in the first half and fell behind to Albania with 11 minutes on the clock.

While its technical ability is not in question, having bossed possession against both Spain and Albania, it has seemed flat in the final third and been unable to build sustained pressure.

With midfield conjuror Luka Modric, now 38, converted full back Ivan Perisic, 35, and forward Andrej Kramaric, 33, Dalic has kept faith with the old guard that has served him so well in the past.

Yet this could be one tournament too far for a side which has frequently surpassed expectations.

“The World Cup was two years ago and slowly our players are getting older, and this whole tournament has shown us that everyone is having a hard time,” Dalic said.