How Italy Could Line Up In High-Stakes Fixture Against Belgium

Italy enjoyed a dream start to their fourth consecutive UEFA Nations League campaign with back-to-back wins last month. Luciano Spalletti’s lads return to action on Thursday with a mouth-watering home clash against Belgium.

A come-from-behind 3-1 triumph against France fired Italy to a perfect Group A2 start. Gli Azzurri followed that success with a hard-earned 2-1 away win against Israel to move three points clear at the top of the section. However, there’s no room for complacency.

With Belgium rolling into Rome and Spalletti lacking several long-serving stalwarts, including Federico Chiesa, the Italy manager has several challenging decisions to make. On a more positive note, most players who inspired the abovementioned wins in September are available.

Despite handing Juventus’ Michele Di Gregorio his maiden senior call-up, Spalletti will probably put Gianluigi Donnaruma between the sticks. The Italy head coach favors a 3-5-2 formation, with Alessandro Bastoni, Giovanni Di Lorenzo, and Riccardo Calafiori likely to take care of defensive business.

On the flanks, Andrea Cambiaso and Federico Dimarco seem like the best candidates. Italy received a massive personnel boost last month as Sandro Tonali returned to football fields after a nine-month suspension. Davide Frattesi and Samuele Ricci will probably partner up with the Newcastle United ace in the midfield department.

Since Gianluca Scamacca is still out of contention, another Atalanta star will lead the line at the Stadio Olimpico. Mateo Retegui will be at the heart of Spalletti’s attack, while Roma’s Lorenzo Pellegrini will defend the colors of Italy on familiar terrain.

Italy Probable Line-up vs Belgium

(3-5-1-1): Donnarumma; Di Lorenzo, Bastoni, Calafiori; Dimarco, Frattesi, Tonali, Ricci, Cambiaso; Pellegrini; Retegui.