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In Group 2 of League B over the past two seasons, Israel managed to remain undefeated with two wins and two draws, securing promotion to League A. This marks a significant step up for Israel, as they now find themselves in a highly competitive group alongside Belgium, Italy, and France.
Last Friday, Israel kicked off the competition with a challenging away match against Belgium. Italy, meanwhile, is also facing struggles, with its squad considered historically weak in recent years.
Although Italy won the Euro 2021 tournament in England, that success seems to have masked deeper issues within the team. The Squadra Azzurra failed to qualify for the last two World Cups in 2018 and 2022, highlighting the decline of Italian football. To add to their woes, Italy also crashed out of Euro 2024 in the Round of 16 with a 2-0 defeat to Switzerland. Italy traveled to France last Friday for their opening game of the upcoming Nations League.
Israel enters this campaign without several key players, including goalkeepers Peretz (Bayern Munich) and Omri Glazer (Red Star Belgrade), defender Goldberg (Maccabi Haifa), midfielder Dan Glazer (Nizhny Novgorod), and forwards Zahavi (Maccabi Tel Aviv) and Weissman (Granada), all of whom were not selected. Despite this, they have some notable names such as captain and full-back Dasa (Dynamo Moscow), midfielder Gloukh (Salzburg), winger Solomon (Leeds), and promising young striker Khalaily (19, Union Sainte Gilloise).
On the other hand, Italy’s current squad lacks the star power of previous years. While goalkeeper Donnarumma (PSG) is still a key figure and set to earn his 66th cap, the likes of Chiellini, Barzagli, Verratti, and Immobile are no longer part of the team.
The defense remains solid with players like Bastoni (Inter, 27 caps) and youngster Calfiori (Arsenal, 5 caps), but the attack is lacking, with no player having scored more than six goals for the national team. Kean (Fiorentina, 15 caps) and Raspadori (30 caps, 6 goals) are expected to feature. Key players such as Barella (recovering from surgery), Chiesa (just transferred to Liverpool), and Berardi (Achilles injury) are absent, while Ciro Immobile was not called up after moving to Turkey.
Italy would love to spoil Israel’s promotion ambitions, but with a 15-game winless streak on the road, including five consecutive losses, this seems unlikely. Israel, meanwhile, has been in fine form at home, winning eight of their last nine matches at this level.
Prediction: Israel 1-0 Italy
