Finland and Italy meet at Ratinan Stadion, in a match for this phase of the Qualification for the European Championship (Qualifying Round). The history of recent direct confrontations is favorable to the visiting team, which records 2 victories in the last 2 matches. In this match the home factor may be decisive, since Finland presents considerable differences in its results at home and as a visitor.
Finland :
After 4 wins and 1 loss, the home team is currently in 2nd place, with 12 points won. In the last match, they won by (1-0) at home against Greece, after in the previous match, they won by (0-2) away with Liechtenstein. This is a stronger team with the support of his fans, since in the last 30 games he has 5 wins, 2 draws and 8 losses as a visitor; against 9 wins, 4 draws and 2 losses in his stadium. In the last 10 games played at home for all competitions, Finland won 8 and drew 2.
In this competition, he won the last 4 games he played. The defense has been strong and only suffered goals in 1 of the last 5 matches, and their attack has scored regularly, as they scored goals in 4 of the last 5 matches for this competition. In 15 games, he suffered the first goal 4 times and never got the comeback.
Finland is motivated for this match, after getting another win in this qualifying round, the fourth in a row, beating Greece 1-0: Pukki scored the team’s only goal, a penalty. In this game against Italy, a very complicated opponent at all levels, coach Markku Kanerva must act with a defensive strategy, seeking only the counterattack to explore the opponent’s back. Striker Pukki is the star of this team, being Finland’s best gunner, with 4 goals scored. All equipment is available for this game.
Italy:
After 5 victories, the visiting team is currently in 1st position, with 15 points won. In the last match, he won by (1‑3) against Armenia, after in the previous match, having won by (2‑1) at home with Bosnia-Herzegovina. This is a team that presents similar results at home and abroad, so it is not usually affected by the home factor, since in the last 30 matches it records 8 wins, 2 draws and 5 losses as a visitor; against 9 wins and 6 draws in his stadium. In its last 9 away matches, Italy records 4 wins, 1 draw and 4 losses.
In this competition, he won the last 5 games he played. His attack has scored regularly, as he always scored at least one goal in the last 5 games for this competition. In their away matches there is a tendency for few goals, since 4 of their last 9 games ended with Under 1,5 goals and 6 in 9 ended with Under 2,5 goals. In 15 games, he suffered the first goal 6 times, but got the comeback in 2.
Italy comes to this match with a 1-3 win against Armenia, adding their fifth consecutive victory in this competition: their goals were scored by Belotti (2) and Pellegrini. In this match against the second classified of the group, coach Mancini must keep the team in a 4-3-3, favoring a style of ball possession and search for spaces on the flanks. Andrea Belotti must play in the attack front of the Italian team, being one of the best gunners, with 2 goals scored. For this game, the visiting coach can count on the same players from the last game.
