An organised Italian side came out 2-0 winners over Beligium inside Lyon’s Stade des Lumieres with goals courtesy of live wire Emanuele Giaccherini and an emphatic late finish from Southampton forward Graziano Pelle.
Juventus defensive trio lead Italy to victory
During his three year tenure at Juventus these three defenders were the backbone of Conte’s success, setting a new defensive record in Serie A for the least amount of goals conceded in a single season and the side even remaining undefeated in 2011-12. Antonio Conte is a master at the art of defending and with a fit and healthy three man defence of Andrea Barzagli, Leonardo Bonucci and Giorgio Chiellini, the Azzurri could match up to any attack in world football.
Simply put, they are the best three man defence on the planet, each player offers the ability to match up to a different opponent and each providing different characteristics. Barzagli the elegant, seasoned veteran of the defence, Bonucci the ball playing mastermind and Chiellini providing an extreme level of physicality and positional sense.
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Belgium’s aces had no answers for the Italian defence
A very disappointing performance from Belgium’s stars Eden Hazard, Kevin De Bruyne and in particular Romelu Lukaku, who did not have a sniff at goal all game. The EPL standouts each enjoyed a bad day at the office as Conte’s men delivered a defensive masterclass, restricting the amount of space in their attacks and limiting chances to an absolute minimum.
If Belgium are to make a deep run in the tournament, they will need all three players to provide much better, however on a positive note, right now the Italian defence is being regarded as the world’s best, so they most likely will not have to match up to another opponent with such defensive capabilities.
If Italy go a goal down, they will be severely exposed
A great performance from Italy on the defensive side, even registering two goals, however, the link between midfield and attack was not a standout feature of their win and they will need to offer a little more versatility and killer instinct moving forward. A midfield full of workhorses, Conte’s men look for inspiration out wide from the likes of Antonio Candreva and Matteo Darmian.
The Italians showed a great ability to defend against a team with top attacking talent however against a team that will provide a bit more of an attacking threat and let’s be honest it won’t all be as smooth as today, there’s no doubt Italy will need somebody who can step up in central midfield with the ability to link play going forward. Italy’s hopes will solely rely on their ability to grab a goal and defend a lead. The unknown is how they will react when going a goal down and being forced to provide more of a creative spark.
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