Two giants of the European international stage will meet on Thursday when Italy host Germany in the Nations League and here you can find out the team news and predictions in our preview.
Italy Vs Germany Preview
Italy and Germany will convene at the San Siro on Thursday night for the first-leg of their Nations League quarter-final tie.
Germany were unbeaten in their Nations League group which consisted of the Netherlands, Hungary and Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Italy meanwhile finished second to France in their group which also featured Belgium and Israel.
Since winning Euro 2020, Italy have struggled when it comes to competitive tournaments
They failed to make the World Cup in Qatar and were knocked out by Switzerland in the Round of 16 at Euro 2024.
However, they have shown improvement since Euro 2024 with five wins in six – their only defeat being a 3-1 loss to France in the group stage.
Germany are unbeaten in their last six games since they lost to Spain in the quarter-finals of Euro 2024.
This is Germany’s first time in the finals of the Nations League, having failed to reach this stage on their first three attempts. Italy were knocked out in the semi-finals in both 2021 and 2023.
Germany beat Italy in a 5-2 thriller when these sides last met in June 2022. On that day Timo Werner scored a brace, with Joshua Kimmich, Ilkay Gundogan and Thomas Muller also scoring for Germany.
Italy and Germany will meet in the second-leg at Signal Iduna Park on Sunday night.
This week in UEFA Nations League:
🏟️ Thursday: 🇳🇱 Netherlands 🆚 Spain 🇪🇸
🏟️ Thursday: 🇭🇷 Croatia 🆚 France 🇫🇷
🏟️ Thursday: 🇩🇰 Denmark 🆚 Portugal 🇵🇹
🏟️ Thursday: 🇮🇹 Italy 🆚 Germany 🇩🇪🏟️ Sunday: 🇪🇸 Spain 🆚 Netherlands 🇳🇱
🏟️ Sunday: 🇫🇷 France 🆚 Croatia 🇭🇷
🏟️ Sunday: 🇵🇹… pic.twitter.com/vaz9avwyRn— Goals ⚽ (@Goals360hub) March 19, 2025
Italy Team News
Italy will be without striker Mateo Retegui for both legs of their Nations League quarter-final with Germany.
Retegui was sent home by manager Luciano Spalletti due to an injury, with Mattia Zaccagni and Andrea Cambiaso also at risk of missing the first leg.
Moise Kean will likely start up front for Italy amid the absence of Retegui.
Other players missing from the squad include Federico Dimarco and Manuel Locatelli.
Former Chelsea midfielder Cesare Casadei has been handed his first call-up after impressing with Torino.
Germany Team News
Julian Nagelsmann has a lengthier injury list to contend with ahead of the clash with Italy.
Among notable absentees include Kai Havertz, Florian Wirtz, Marc-Andre ter Stege, Felix Nmecha and Benjamin Henrichs.
Leon Goretka is back in Germany’s squad for the first time since November 2023 while Joshua Kimmich could win his 98th cap.
Yann Bisseck is one of two uncapped players along with Man City goalkeeper Stefan Ortega.
Confirmed Lineups
Italy (3-5-2): Donnarumma; Di Lorenzo, Bastoni, Calafiori; Politano, Barella, Rovella, Tonali, Udogie; Kean, Raspadori
Germany (4-2-3-1): Baumann; Kimmich, Tah, Rudiger, Raum; Groß, Goretzka; Sane, Musiala, Amiri; Burkardt
Italy Vs Germany Prediction
There is nothing to split the two nations according to the best-rated UK football betting sites, who have both countries at 17/10 to win when the sides meet on Thursday night at 7.45pm GMT.
At home, Italy will fancy their chances and given that Germany are missing some important attacking players in Kai Havertz and Florian Wirtz, we predict the hosts might just snatch a slender home victory to take to the second-leg in Dortmund on Sunday.
Prediction: Italy 1-0 Germany
