Five days until kick-off -> Italy looks good!

It is only five days until the kick-off for the European Championship in football. The first match will be played at the Olympic Stadium in Rome, and it will start at 21.00 local time in Italy. The teams that will play are Italy and Turkey, and I believe the tournament might start with some real fireworks.

Unfortunately, the Olympic Stadium will only be filled with approximately 25% of its maximum capacity. It is sad for the sport, but you might also say that it is way better than the 0% which has been quite normal in most of Europe throughout the season. There are only two stadiums during Euro 2020 that will run with about 50% capacity (Baku and St. Petersburg), and there is only one stadium that will run with 100% capacity, and that is Puskas Arena in Budapest (where France will play against Portugal during the group stage).

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So, Italy will play against Turkey in their opening match and based on their warm-up match against the Czech Republic, I believe Italy might give us all a big surprise. If you have followed the football world for some years, you probably know that the Italian national hasn't done well recently. But, they have a habit of doing well in big tournaments, and they are a really tough opponent as they defend themselves with great discipline.

How far can Italy go in Euro 2020?

The most impressive results in the list of friendlies before Euro 2020 are the results of France who won 3-0 against Wales and Italy as they won 4-0 against the Czech Republic. It clearly proves that Italy is a dangerous team and that they are capable of beating any opponent. But, I remember very well how Slovakia won against Germany in a friendly match before the European Championship in 2016. It gave them all hope, and it looked well until they had to play against one another during the knockout stage of Euro 2016. Germany knew that Slovakia was a hard nut to crack so they worked even harder, and got a quite easy win in the actual tournament.

Sometimes getting the expectations up in front of a tournament like Italy just did by winning against the Czech Republic might have a two-sided effect. It might affect the players in a positive way, giving them faith and hope, something that is needed in order to succeed. It might also give a boost to fans who now believe more than ever that Italy might be capable of winning the tournament.

But, there is also a danger that Italy might boost their confidence too much, and then it might hit them in the back!

What do you think of Italy?

Do you believe Italy has a chance to win Euro 2020? Will they even be able to beat Turkey in the opening match?

I believe that playing in Rome in front of more than 20,000 spectators will have a positive effect on the Italian team, and knowing that Turkey is a team always playing with great risks, I hope and believe that we will get a fantastic opening match with 4-5 goals, and most likely with Italy winning the match 4-1 or 3-2 in the end. What do you think?

If you want to watch the opening match and all the other matches during the European Championship in football online, make sure to visit https://www.watchworldcup.net/